Cyborg Fighter Leon
by Maverick Mega Man X
Summary: Collab with Greendolphin24. The beautiful Retasu Midorikawa is sent to Kanagawa prefecture to investigate a series of murders believed to have been perpetrated by a Chimera Anima... that Masha somehow can't detect! Is this a new breed of Chimera Anima? What is the "Legendary Inn"? And who is this mysterious boy with cybernetic enhancements that Retasu keeps crossing paths with?
1. Strange happenings in Kanagawa

**This story has been written in collaboration with Greendolphin24 from DeviantArt.**

About 5 years had passed since the group of magical girls collectively known as Tokyo Mew Mew had saved the world from an alien menace. It was a cool summer morning when one of said magical girls, the beautiful now-19-years-old Retasu Mirorikawa, looked out through the window of the Yamanote elevated train…

Retasu had noticeably changed in the last five years. Aside from her more developed body that comes naturally with the age, she had let her long hair loose, more clearly showing how it reached down to her waist. This made her look a little more confident than five years ago, but she was still not doing anything flashy or extravagant with her hairstyle other than loosening it, so it wasn't a big increase. And she was still wearing those big thin-framed glasses. Retasu still had a preference for more demure styles of clothing as well, wearing a long green skirt that covered her knees, and a white sleeveless blouse with no cleavage, although with the slight increase in breast size it made the bulge on her chest look more noticeable, especially because the blouse was relatively tight. On her feet she was wearing green flats without socks, popping her left heel out of the shoe while she waited for the train to reach its destination…

Retasu started flashing back to the mission briefing that her boss, 20-years-old Ryou Shirogane, had given her at their base of operations under their cutesy-looking café. That underground base was dark and full of computers and high-tech, a glaring contrast with the pastel-colored yellow-and-pink café…

"You may have probably heard the recent news about the series of murders at the Kanagawa prefecture…" Ryou started. "According to police investigation, the way the victims' bodies were torn apart suggests a non-human killer, but the nature of the wounds doesn't seem to fit any normal animal either"

"Shirogane-san! Do you mean…?" a shocked Retasu asked…

"Yes. I suspect a Chimera Anima might have done it" Ryou answered…

"But… wouldn't Masha have reacted if that had been the case?" Retasu questioned…

"That's what worries me. How did this Chimera Anima pass under the R2000's radar? What makes it different?" Ryou said. "In order to find the answer to those questions, I summoned you here. I need you to investigate the Kanagawa prefecture while I gather the rest of the team"

"Are you sending me to battle a Chimera Anima all alone?" Retasu asked worriedly…

"No. I'd like you to avoid combat until I can send reinforcements. This is a recon mission. We'll gather information on the enemy first before eventually taking it down" Ryou replied…

Retasu woke up from her flashback as she heard the bell indicating that the train had arrived at the station in the Kanagawa prefecture. Despite being an elevated train, this particular station was at ground level. Retasu got off the train and into the large town, which showed very traditional Japanese architecture despite this being the 21st century. She decided to take her time to explore the city and get acquainted with her new surroundings. The first thing that called her attention was a propaganda sign at the station itself with Japanese letters that roughly translated as "January 4th: Never forget"…

"Are you new around here, young lady?" a short old woman asked politely as she approached Retasu…

"Y-Yes!" Retasu replied timidly…

"That poor boy… On that day he got rammed by the Yamanote train at this same intersection" the old lady commented sadly…

"Oh! That's horrible!" Retasu exclaimed, shrinking just imagining the pain that the victim must have felt…

"I'm sorry to have put such an ugly image in your head. I see you're quite the empathic young lady. That's a valuable trait that you should never lose" the little old lady said. "Well, I'd better get going…"

"I can keep you company for a while, if you wish" Retasu offered…

"Aw, how kind of you. Of course you can come with me!" the old lady replied with a smile. Retasu and the old lady then left the station together and shared a nice, leisurely walk, which also served as a nice way to explore more of the city. "I'm glad you decided to tag along with me. It's dangerous to go alone these days, what with all the murders and shoe thefts" the old lady commented…

"Shoe thefts?" Retasu asked confusedly…

"Yes. There's some crazy goof going around stealing pretty young ladies' shoes, right off their feet without them even noticing until it's too late. It's nothing compared to the murders, but I can only imagine how annoyed the girls must be to have to walk back home barefoot" the old lady said. "This is my house" the old lady finally said as she stopped at an old wooden house designed in the style of the ancient Edo period…

At that moment Retasu noticed a girl crying on a nearby bench. Retasu immediately felt sorry for this crying girl. She had reddish-brown hair tied to the right side and wore a yellow t-shirt with a short blue jean skirt…

"Oh… That poor young lady over there lost her boyfriend to one of the murders. Losing your husband due to old age is one thing, but I cannot even imagine how painful it must be to lose your loved one in such a horrible way" the old lady said…

Retasu promptly approached the crying girl. "Um… My sympathies" Retasu said to her…

"Thanks…" the crying girl replied. "It's weird, you know… I'm not one to cry often, and I never thought I would cry for _him_ , of all people… but now he's gone forever…"

"They say one doesn't appreciate what she has until she loses it…" Retasu commented. "I'm Retasu Midorikawa. Pleased to meet you" she introduced herself…

"You can call me Kasumi" the girl replied…

"I know it's not much, but I'd like to be your friend from now on" Retasu said, and then she rummaged into her bag. "Here, accept this" she said as she gave Kasumi a small green plush dolphin…

"Aw, it's _so cute_! Thank you, Midorikawa!" Kasumi replied, cuddling the plushy. The old lady smiled at the newly-formed friendship before she got into the house…

Retasu and Kasumi went together to the park to keep chatting with each other, sitting at a bench…

"…And he was such a _bonehead_ sometimes! And so immature, his brain hadn't seemed to have grown past 10 years old! …Oh, but he was _so_ nice to animals! You know you've found yourself a kind boy when he treats animals so nicely" Kasumi told Retasu…

"I know that feeling! I once had a crush on a boy with such a big devotion to protect the planet" Retasu said…

"And what happened? He hurt your heart?" Kasumi asked…

"Oh, no no! He just gently turned me down" Retasu admitted, embarrassed…

"So, he's one of _those_ guys, huh? You know, the type who… _Eek!_ " Kasumi was suddenly interrupted…

"What type? ... _Eek!_ " Retasu suddenly squealed…

Both girls looked down. Retasu's left flat and Kasumi's right sneaker were suddenly missing, and since none of them were wearing socks, their beautiful bare feet were exposed. "It's _that_ guy again!" Kasumi growled…

"Was that the shoe thief?" Retasu squealed…

Hiding in the nearby bushes, a cute harmless-looking 20-year-old young man with short black hair and thin-framed glasses, wearing a black t-shirt with grey pants, black and green sneakers and white socks, was aiming his cell phone camera towards the girls' lovely feet, at such a precise angle to showcase the beauty of two one-shod girls that only a professional artist photographer could get right. "This one is going to my gallery" he thought with a perverted smile, a blush and a slight nosebleed, while holding the shoes he stole from them. However, the lens of the cell phone camera inadvertently caused a gleam in the bushes. Kasumi and Retasu immediately looked the young man's way and spotted him. "Uh-oh…" the poor young man uttered…

" _Get back here with my shoe, you creep!_ " Kasumi screamed furiously. The thief/artist ran away, scared…

" _Please give me back my shoe!_ " Retasu pleaded, as both girls started chasing the shoe thief…

Said thief did nothing to fight back or even try to slow them down. Retasu soon stopped chasing him when she noticed how it hurts to run on one bare foot on the hard pavement of the street, but Kasumi endured it and continued to give chase. Retasu stopped at a random street corner to massage her own sore foot…

Soon Retasu noticed a 19-year-old young man who just stopped by, dressed completely in black casual clothes, more precisely a t-shirt, long pants, and sneakers with socks. He also had short black hair to match. His somewhat thick eyebrows were fixed in a frowning expression, but Retasu noticed he was blushing, and then noticed it was because he was staring at her bare foot. Retasu's face went red from embarrassment as she tried to hide her foot behind her other leg. The young man, seeing Retasu's reaction, looked elsewhere in a half-assed attempt to pretend he wasn't staring at her…

"You're new around here, aren't you?" the young man said, his voice sounding rather harsh. "You chose a bad time to come here" he said, looking at Retasu with the corner of the eye rather sinisterly. "A _very_ bad time… You know how there's a serial killer on the loose in this neighborhood, right?"

Retasu looked at this shady young man with distrust. If there was anyone in this city who looked like a bad guy, it was this person, what with his angry eyes, harsh way of talking and dressed completely in black…

"If I were you, I'd leave this town as soon as possible and by whatever means necessary. It'd be sad if a beautiful Cinderella like you were to get dismembered" he said way too casually for such a morbid topic…

"Um… Excuse me. I'd like to stay and chat, but I _really_ need to get going" Retasu said…

"You're a smart one" the young man in black nodded. "Yes, you need to get going before something bad happens to you" he added before he started walking away from her. By the time the sun was setting, Retasu walked back to the old woman's house…

"Thanks for staying and keeping me company, young lady. Too bad that your shoe got stolen, but I think I still have an unused pair of my granddaughter's" the old lady said, and then she noticed Retasu was reading about the recent murder on the newspaper. "Are you really interested in such a thing?" the old lady asked…

"Well… It's very strange to say the least. The forensic doctors are said to have found jellyfish DNA on the victim's remains… Isn't that weird?" Retasu said…

It was an eerily silent full moon night, not a soul wandering the streets, except for the random beautiful and feminine schoolgirl who ran away frightened while a mysterious shadowy figure with a jellyfish tentacle for an arm walked after her relentlessly. Meanwhile, in a dark alley a few blocks from there…

"A _jellyfish_ killed that guy? In the middle of the city?" the loud, harsh-sounding voice of a young man broke through the silence of the night…

"That's what the forensic doctors said" a more gentle voice of a young man about the same age replied. "Something tells me the police won't be able to catch this one" he added, and then adjusted his thin-framed glasses, which shined white due to the angle of the light. "Think you can handle it, Leon?"

The other silhouette opened his eyes, which glowed red in the dark. "I'm pretty sure I can kick that serial killer's ass" he replied confidently…

Once the old lady fell asleep, Retasu took her Mew Pendant out of her pocket and kissed it. " _Mew Mew Lettuce! Metamorphose!_ " she declared, and her usual transformation sequence took place. Once transformed and ready for action, our heroine jumped out the window and into the dark and empty streets. While heading for the location where she read the initial murder took place, Retasu wondered if the killer would indeed be a Chimera Anima, or maybe a new type of monster entirely. There was no way to tell for sure, but Retasu was convinced that the shady guy in black clothes was a monster in human disguise…

Meanwhile, the schoolgirl was still running through the empty street when one of her loafers came off, causing her to trip and fall, giving her pursuer time to catch up to her. The monster started whipping the poor schoolgirl with the jellyfish tentacle arm, injuring her and causing her to scream, which Retasu heard from a couple blocks away…

" _Why are you doing this to me?_ " the girl cried…

"Why did he have to call _you_ cute and call _me_ ugly?" the killer said, sounding like she was about to cry…

Retasu rushed into the scene and was shocked as she recognized the little green plush dolphin chained on the killer's waist…

"Kasumi-san?" Retasu whispered, horrified. The killer, with her arm still transformed into a light blue tentacle, turned around. It was indeed Kasumi, and she looked heartbroken. "B-But… _why?_ Why are you doing this, Kasumi-san?" Retasu asked sadly…

"Do you know what it feels like to be bullied into thinking you're ugly by your big sisters?" Kasumi said seriously. "All I asked for was someone who would lie to me and tell me I'm beautiful even though I'm not… And when _your boyfriend_ fails to do _that_ …" Kasumi replied as she angrily clenched her teeth and tears appeared in her eyes…

"But, Kasumi-san! You _loved_ him!" Retasu cried…

" _Exactly!_ One has to wonder how a boy can be so nice to animals yet treat his own girlfriend like trash! So what if I'm not feminine enough? That doesn't give him the right to call me ugly!" Kasumi cried as she turned her other arm into another tentacle, as well as her legs, and more started sprouting from her back…

"B-But… going so far as to _kill_ him?" Retasu cried. "And what does that other girl have to do with all this?"

"He _called her cute!_ He had the gall to call _me_ , his girlfriend, ugly, but _some complete stranger girl is cute to him!_ " she screamed as she completed her transformation. The result was a jellyfish-like monster woman with a jellyfish "hat" on top of her head, a red gem on her forehead, Kasumi's face and naked torso with small breasts, and dozens of tentacles for limbs…

With a raging scream Kasumi then attacked the girl she felt jealousy against, trying to whip her with her tentacles. With unbelievable speed and agility, Retasu moved in and acted as a meat shield for the girl, proving able to endure the attack…

"Please run! I got this!" Retasu said to the girl she saved. The girl obeyed and escaped…

"Midorikawa, why? … _Why are you defending her? I thought we were friends!_ " monster Kasumi cried furiously as she attacked Retasu. Our heroine started dodging the relentless barrage of tentacle attacks…

"Is this really a Chimera Anima? I've never heard one say coherent things now that I think about it. Chimera Anima rarely speak, and when they do they usually utter non-sequiturs" Retasu thought as she ran around Kasumi, evading her attacks. " _Lettustanets!_ " she then called her weapons, a pair of oyster-like castanets…

"So, you're going to fight me, Midorikawa?" Kasumi asked angrily…

"I'll do whatever it takes to get you back to normal!" Retasu replied valiantly…

" _So be it!_ " Kasumi screamed as she fired red lasers from the gem on her forehead. Retasu barely dodged…

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu said as she opened her castanets and fired a blast of high-pressure sea water at Kasumi, scoring a direct hit…

Kasumi screamed even more madly as she attacked with another barrage of tentacles. This time, one of said tentacles tangled around Retasu's right boot. Retasu immediately struggled to get out of Kasumi's grasp, which resulted in her foot slipping out of her boot. "Not _again_!" Retasu complained…

Kasumi did not give Retasu time to get her boot back and continued to attack her. Retasu would find herself retreating and escaping to the alleys, using her speed and agility to resort to hit-and-run tactics. However, even with her increased endurance as a magical girl, Retasu still felt the cold and hard floor under her one bare foot as she ran around…

As the fight moved away from where it started, the two mysterious silhouettes from earlier arrived and found Retasu's lost boot. The one with the glasses picked it up immediately. "What gorgeous lady could have lost this sexy boot?" he asked. The sounds of the battle were heard nearby…

"Over there!" the one with the glowing red eyes said as he rushed head-first into the action…

Meanwhile Kasumi had taken another two hits from Retasu's water attacks, but she ultimately managed to restrain Retasu's four limbs…

"In the end, you're just like them!" Kasumi cried angrily as she charged up a laser attack to kill Retasu…

With a loud scream, the guy with the eyes that glowed red in the dark suddenly charged in and punched Kasumi hard, with enough strength to knock her over and make her let go of Retasu. When Retasu's view cleared, she saw the shady young man in black from earlier, standing there, his eyes glowing red in the dark…


	2. The cyborg fighter

Retasu stared in awe at the young man in black with the glowing red eyes, who had just punched away the monster that was about to kill her seconds ago…

"Did he… save me?" Retasu thought, surprised as this mean-looking, harsh-sounding young man was the last person Retasu expected to be rescued by…

"Are you alright?" the gentle voice of another young man said to Retasu as he offered a hand to help her get up…

"Thank you, sir" Retasu accepted the offer…

But when Retasu fully stood up, she saw that the one who helped her get up was none other than the shoe thief, who was now wearing a white lab coat with his usual attire. She was speechless…

"Oh! Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself: Dr. Aleksandr Seto, at your service. You may call me Andr" the shoe thief introduced himself politely, he then knelt down, gently took Retasu's one bare foot and gave it a kiss, embarrassing her in a cute way as she felt flattered but also very awkward…

"Retasu Midorikawa" she introduced herself while quickly pulling her foot away from the man's lips. "…Dr. Seto, who is that person?" she asked, looking at the young man in black…

"He's a cyborg I personally created… _and_ my best friend… His name is Leon" Andr replied…

Kasumi got up, even angrier than before, and tried to whip Leon with her many tentacles, but the cyborg dodged the attacks while quickly running towards her. Once he reached her, Leon repeatedly punched Kasumi. Retasu winced, imagining the pain the poor monster must have felt. Leon's last punch knocked the jellyfish monster away several meters, giving her a hard landing on the pavement…

"The cybernetics in his body grants him a much greater strength, speed and endurance than when he was human" Andr explained to Retasu…

Kasumi started slowly getting up. She was furious and had a psychotic look in her teary eyes…

" _Why is everyone against me?_ " Kasumi cried. "All these years he did nothing but make me feel like trash! I just wanted to teach him the right way of doing things!"

Kasumi then flashed back to her moments with her now-dead boyfriend, a spunky-looking boy a couple years younger than her whose main distinguishing feature was the red and white baseball cap he was always wearing. In fact, baseball was exactly what he was playing at the practice field with a small group of friends, Kasumi included. Kasumi's boyfriend pitched, but the boy at the bat easily hit the ball away, exposing how bad he was at pitching the ball…

"You're doing it wrong!" Kasumi said to her boyfriend…

"I got distracted because you keep staring at me with that fish face of yours!" the offended boy replied angrily…

Kasumi blushed, she was indeed staring at him. "Well, what'd you expect? You're my boyfriend for a reason, _dumb-ass_!" she thought inwardly, but was too ashamed to voice it. "Well, maybe if you had at least half a brain you would know the difference between pitching the ball and just flinging it like a monkey!" she yelled instead…

" _You_ 're a monkey!" the boy yelled back…

" _Great!_ The _married couple_ is bickering again!" one of the other boys in the field complained, seriously annoyed…

The boy with the cap took offense to that comment and turned angrily towards his friend. "I would _never_ marry this ugly jellyfish!" he shouted…

Kasumi, on the other hand, blushed at the idea of marrying the boy with the cap. "Why not? You have no idea how cute and athletic you are! And I love your courage and determination! If only you were not such a _dumb-ass_ , I wouldn't be so ashamed of people knowing that I like you!" she thought inwardly, and then she pretended to be offended as well. " _Good!_ I don't want to be the wife of some cocky little idiot who can't tell his left from his right!"

Another instance had the boy with the cap failing at a videogame, only for Kasumi to nag him again…

"That's not how to play this game!" Kasumi said. "Let me teach you!"

" _I know_ how to play this game!" the offended boy yelled…

"You _lost in the first level_ , you idiot!" Kasumi yelled back…

" _You_ 're the idiot!" the boy shouted…

Their other friends in the room sighed in annoyance, but did nothing to stop their bickering…

Then in another instance, at school, the group of mostly-male friends saw the beautiful schoolgirl (the same one Kasumi would pursue later in the present) gracefully walk by. All of the boys in the group were drooling as they stared at her with their eyes shaped like pink hearts. The other boys could indulge themselves because of being single, but the boy with the cap, being Kasumi's boyfriend, had no such excuse…

"She's so cute… I wish I had her instead of being stuck with the ugly jellyfish" the boy with the cap mumbled, forgetting that his girlfriend was right beside him…

This had been the last straw. Everyone expected Kasumi to get angry and comically yell at her boyfriend like usual. Instead, she was looking down, her eyes obscured by her bangs, a small gleam coming from one of her tears. She ran away crying…

Back to the present, monster Kasumi burst in rage. " _Why can't you see that I love you? You fucking dumb-ass!_ " she screamed madly before she went berserk and attacked Leon in blind fury…

Leon demonstrated what Andr said earlier about his enhanced agility as he dodged Kasumi's fierce counterattack without getting hit once. And when Kasumi finally did manage to hit him and crash him against a wall, it didn't damage him much…

" _Die!_ " Kasumi screamed as she fired her laser…

Leon just jumped over the attack and his right arm started to transform…

"I also equipped him with plasma cannons on both arms. Only strong enough to stun the target, of course" Andr further explained to Retasu…

Leon fired small white energy shots from his arm cannon, indeed causing Kasumi enough pain to stun her. Using this chance, Leon charged at her, screaming loud, and delivered a series of rapid-fire piston-like punches on her body. About half a second later, Kasumi's body spouted blood at high pressure from the points on her body where she was punched, bleeding to death. Needless to say, Retasu was absolutely horrified. Monster Kasumi's body lay limp on the cold pavement…

"…He still always goes for the kill whenever he fights, though" Andr commented way too nonchalantly considering the fatal outcome of the battle…

" _How_ could you do that?" Retasu cried. "Yes, she was a monster, but I'm sure she could have been cured! And now, Kasumi-san…"

Retasu ran away crying, not caring she had only one boot on…

"Wait! Retasu-chan!" Andr said…

"Forget about her!" Leon said harshly to his friend. "…She might need some time alone" he added, slightly mellowing his voice…

"I see…" Andr conceded, albeit sadly…

Leon and Andr then witnessed Kasumi's dead body quickly revert back to human form, although that would not bring her back to life…

"What a waste of a beautiful girl…" Andr commented sadly as he stared at Kasumi's corpse…

"Tell me about it. Had I been her boyfriend, I would have worshipped her feet" Leon commented, sad for her as well. "Hey! What's that?"

Leon and Andr saw a small jellyfish-like creature, no bigger than a tennis ball, emerge out of Kasumi's dead body and swim in the air…

"Interesting…" Andr said, already starting to ponder…

Leon picked it up with his hand, but soon felt something wrong and violently threw the small jellyfish thing onto the floor…

"He tried to possess me! The son of a bitch tried to possess me!" Leon screamed angrily, and then prepared to stomp the creature…

" _Wait!_ " Andr yelled, stopping his friend…

"What?" Leon said…

"Let's capture it alive! That way I will be able to study it!" Andr suggested…

"…Clever" Leon admitted and let his friend do his job. Andr carefully grabbed the strange jellyfish creature with a pincer and placed it in a jar…

Meanwhile, up on the rooftops, three mysterious women had been overseeing the entire battle. One of them had long hair with an ahoge, another one had short hair and the kind of fox-like facial features that Japanese people consider attractive, and the third one was dressed in kendo clothes and carried a wooden katana…

"Oi! Your monster got creamed!" the one with the ahoge yelled at the one with the fox-like face…

"The appearance of that man was an unforeseen occurrence. We just need to adjust the plan accordingly" the fox-like one replied…

"Want me to cut them down to size?" the one with the wooden katana offered…

"I don't think we need to bother with them for the time being" the fox-like one answered…

"Hmph… It was just a lucky one-off! Besides, that was just one measly pawn! We can go on without her!" the one with the ahoge said…

"Indeed. There's still many more where that one came from" the fox-like one said…

"Fine. Let's plan our next move" the one with the ahoge said before all three of them jumped away from the scene…

The next morning, Retasu was packing her stuff…

"You're going already?" the old lady at whose home Retasu had stayed asked…

"I'm done with my business in Kanagawa. Thanks again for letting me stay at your house and for the new pair of shoes" Retasu said, formally bowing to the old lady…

"It was a pleasure to meet such a fine young woman as you. Have a safe trip back to Tokyo, dear" the old lady said…

"Thanks for everything!" Retasu said happily as she walked out of the house…

"By the way…" the old lady interrupted Retasu for a last time. "…Do you happen to be trying to enter Tokyo University?"

"Yes… I plan to retry the entrance exam this year" Retasu replied…

"That institution is a tough one to enter. The entrance exams are extremely hard…" the old lady warned her…

"I know… But I still want to give it another shot" Retasu replied with a smile…

"There is a rumor here in Kanagawa… It is said that somewhere here is a legendary inn. Legends tell that it has the power to get anyone into Tokyo University" the old woman said…

Retasu giggled innocently at the idea. "Now that's a funny one! …Goodbye!" she finally said as she hurried to the train station…

Meanwhile, at a bunker hidden under an otherwise normal-looking house, Andr was in his small laboratory, doing his best to examine the strange jellyfish-like creature, when Leon walked in…

"So… Any luck on discovering what the fuck that thing is?" Leon asked…

"If anything, no… I spent all night doing tests and yet I have no idea what the hell this thing is" Andr replied with a yawn while taking off his glasses to rub his tired eyes…

"Well, I got you some news… I knew I had seen that girl in green somewhere before. Look…" Leon said, and then he typed into one of the lab's computers to show Andr an old internet video from five years ago, showing the Tokyo Mew Mew in battle. Leon and Andr spotted Retasu and paused the video to look at her…

"It's her! The girl you saved!" Andr said…

"Those girls are the Tokyo Mew Mew, famous for saving the planet from an alien invasion 5 years ago. I always thought the green one was the hottest of the group" Leon commented…

Andr then picked up Retasu's lost boot that he couldn't give back. "That's it! If one of them came here to investigate the murder, then they must know something!" and he immediately got to work…

Later that day, the Yamanote elevated train arrived at the Tokyo station. Retasu got off the train, glad to be back home. She couldn't stop thinking of what happened last night, and especially Leon and Andr. One boy who fought a monster for her, and the other who helped her up like a gentleman, but the fact that Kasumi did not survive the fight also bothered her…

"Why were those people there? _Who_ are they? This might be deeper than we initially guessed. I'd better report this to Shirogane-san" Retasu thought to herself before heading for the Mew Mew Café…


	3. Alliance

Back at the Tokyo Mew Mew's base of operations under their café, Retasu had reported back to Ryou, telling him everything that happened…

"Well, that didn't work the way I had expected. Now we have more questions than answers" Ryou said…

"A girl who could transform into a monster similar to a Chimera Anima at will, while retaining her capacities of speech and reason… and on top of that a fighting cyborg and a shoe thief…" Ryou's partner, 26-years-old Keiichiro Akasaka, pondered…

"The shoe thief isn't important!" Ryou said with a comical expression…

"Say that to all of those poor girls who've had to walk barefoot on the cold and hard pavement" Keiichiro replied…

"Um… The shoe thief was the one who built the cyborg, though" Retasu interjected…

Ryou sighed. "Retasu, take the day off. You must have had a really tough day there at the Kanagawa prefecture"

Since Ryou giving his employees a day off was such a rare occurrence, Retasu immediately took the chance without thinking twice. In less than one hour she was already at the library…

"Excuse me… Is this seat occupied?" a familiar harsh-sounding voice interrupted Retasu's reading…

Retasu looked up from her book and saw Leon standing there. She was understandably scared…

"What are you doing here?" she asked in a low voice since they were in the library…

Leon sat on the side opposite from Retasu. "I've brought you your glass slipper" he said as he handed a bag to Retasu. She looked inside and saw the boot she had lost during the battle with Kasumi…

"How did you find me?" Retasu asked…

"Your boot had plenty of your DNA. For Andr it was just a matter of taking a sample, hacking into the government's DNA database and finding a match. We found out where you live and where you work" Leon explained to her…

"No offense, but you're creeping me out, Leon-san" Retasu said worriedly…

"I'm here because we desperately need your help" Leon said…

"My help? May I know for what?" Retasu asked with distrust…

"Right now, my friend is making a phone call to your boss about that small jellyfish-like creature. The one that emerged out of the monster girl's body after she died" Leon revealed. Retasu instantly knew what he was talking about…

"Mew Mew Café, good morning" Ryou answered the phone…

"Good morning, sir. Are you the one in charge of this establishment?" a familiar gentle voice asked over the phone…

"Yes, it's me" Ryou replied…

"I'd like to talk about a certain creature, similar to a jellyfish…" the voice said…

"I'm sorry, but we don't serve that dessert. Goodbye" Ryou said sarcastically as he was about to hang…

"It possessed a girl's body back at Kanagawa prefecture" the voice said. The usual smug expression in Ryou's face disappeared…

"Who are you?" Ryou asked…

"I'm a scientist standing across the street from your back door" Andr replied…

Ryou hanged the phone and immediately opened the back door. Andr waved his hand from the other side of the street to let him know it was him…

"Mr. Shirogane, I presume?" Andr said once he had crossed the street and met Ryou…

"Are you the shoe thief?" Ryou asked, causing Andr to make a funny face. "Err… I mean, are you Dr. Seto?"

"Yes and yes" Andr replied, chuckling a bit. "You see, what I want to talk to you about is _this_ "

And then Andr took out a sealed jar filled with liquid, with the jellyfish-like creature that was possessing Kasumi floating inside…

"Let's talk about this in a more private place" Ryou said seriously. Andr was taken to the Tokyo Mew Mew's secret base under the café. The creature was placed in a vat of liquid for analysis…

"That's a Parasite Alien!" the surprised Keiichiro exclaimed. "I hadn't seen one of these in years!"

"You said earlier that a girl was being possessed by this Parasite Alien here, right?" Ryou said…

"I see you're well acquainted with the little guy. I take it you really are the commander of the famous Tokyo Mew Mew" Andr said…

"What is your objective?" Ryou asked Andr, showing distrust…

"We find ourselves in need of your invaluable help. I came here because I'd like to propose an alliance" Andr said…

"An alliance?" Retasu asked Leon just outside the library…

"That's right. Andr and I believe you and your friends must know the optimal method for fighting these monsters" Leon said…

"Well… For that we need Ichigo. She's the essential component" Retasu said as she suddenly sat down on a nearby bench…

"Are you ok?" Leon asked…

"My feet are still sore from running around barefoot on Kanagawa's pavement" Retasu complained…

Leon immediately sat down on the sidewalk in front of her. "Where does it hurt?"

"Excuse me?" Retasu said confusedly…

"Your foot. Where does it hurt?" Leon asked again…

Meanwhile, now 18-years-old Ichigo Momomiya had already responded to Ryou's call and was back in Tokyo, but brought her beloved fiancé of the same age, Masaya Aoyama, with her…

Like Retasu, Ichigo had also changed in the five years that passed. Aside from the obvious body development, she also got rid of the girlish pigtails she used to wear when she was 13. She was a lady now, and her new choice in hairstyle reflected that. Her clothing style, as usual, was neither too demure nor too revealing, being the only normal member of the Tokyo Mew Mew…

As for Masaya, as always he would keep his hair short, his face clean-shaved and dress with a slight amount of formality, as the model student goody-two-shoes that society would expect him to be…

The happy couple walked side by side, minding their own business, holding hands and looking cute together when Ichigo suddenly spotted Retasu at a bench with a guy in black who was gently removing Retasu's left flat. In response, Ichigo meowed happily as her cat ears and tail sprouted out. She hid behind the nearest tree and pulled her lover with her…

"Ichigo-chan, why are we hiding?" Masaya asked while Ichigo spied on Retasu and Leon…

Meanwhile, Leon started giving Retasu's foot a massage. The poor green-haired beauty instantly giggled…

"Tee-hee-hee-hee! That tickles!" Retasu laughed happily, blushing, cutely embarrassed, but not opposing much resistance. For such a mean-loooking guy Leon sure knew how to pamper a lady's foot…

" _Retasu has a boyfriend!_ " Ichigo squealed excitedly. "I can't wait to tell the whole crew!" she then said as she texted Minto, Bu-Ling and Zakuro…

"I'm happy for her too" Masaya said calmly, blushing and smiling fondly as he watched his beautiful kitty girlfriend get all cutely excited…

"The Parasite Alien, also known as Para Para. It is an organism used as a tool by the aliens that attacked the Earth five years ago" Ryou started explaining. "It would normally possess an animal host to create a monster called Chimera Anima, but the aliens later learned to make more powerful Chimera Anima by fusing them with human souls"

"I see… And so the monsters would gain the capability of speech and reason, right? Very clever" Andr said…

"Actually… no. A Chimera Anima would still be a mindless beast regardless of its host. That's what's so strange about the incident at Kanagawa, because this latest Chimera Anima showed a capability none other had before. I'd like to further analyze this specimen you brought, Dr. Seto" Ryou said…

"That's for sure! It's the reason I brought it in the first place" Andr replied…

"Why are boys kissing and pampering my feet so much lately?" Retasu asked Leon, feeling flattered but embarrassed, while walking side by side with him…

"The real question is why boys don't kiss and pamper your feet more often" Leon replied…

"Leon is a very unusual name for someone living in Japan… You're not from around here, I presume" Retasu said…

"I've been told I'm from a Hispanic bloodline" Leon said…

As they walked towards the café, Ichigo, together with 18-year-old Minto Aizawa, a noticeably-changed 16-year-old Bu-Ling Huang, and even Masaya were stalking Retasu and Leon…

Minto had changed to a more 'royal' hairstyle, most prominently the 'drill curls' at either side of her face. The blue dress she was wearing was brand new and impeccable, with puffy shoulders, all to make herself look even more like a princess…

As for Bu-Ling, the years were rather generous to her. She not only developed her curves and breasts a lot in the five years that passed (considering she was 11 during the alien invasion, making the change even more noticeable), but she also had the most athletic body out of them all. She grew her blonde hair long and tied into a long Chinese-style braid. She would still dress in stereotypical Chinese clothes…

"I didn't know Retasu was into _that_ sort of guy" Minto commented somewhat condescendingly…

"Different knights for different princesses, I suppose" Ichigo replied…

"What do you mean?" Minto asked…

"Some of us prefer the charming nice guy type…" Ichigo said, imagining Masaya as a Superman expy saving her and carrying her bridal-style as they soared through the day sky. "…but other girls are more fond of darker brooding types" she continued, imagining Retasu about to be attacked by a thug in a Gotham-like setting, only for Leon in a Batman-like outfit to emerge from the darkness and knock the thug out, and in the next scene he'd be brooding at the night sky with the full moon as background, with an enamored Retasu watching him from a distance…

"Did you girls stalk Ichigo-chan and me like this too?" Masaya asked…

"It was a better love story than most soap operas" Minto replied…

"Yeah! Someone should write a manga about you and Ichigo's love story!" Bu-ling exclaimed happily…

"There's a weird crowd following us. Should I beat 'em up?" Leon asked Retasu…

" _No!_ They're my friends!" Retasu answered…

They all arrived at the Mew Mew Café, where Ryou, Keiichiro, Andr and a 20-years-old Zakuro were already waiting for them…

"You're late. What took you so long?" Zakuro asked coldly. Being a famous model, Zakuro was dressed with the latest and trendiest fashion of the moment. For her hair, she was wearing the 'hime' haircut associated with traditional Japanese princesses, albeit not much of a variation on the hairstyle she used to have five years ago…

"Uh…well…" Ichigo and her friends hesitated. They didn't want to admit they got distracted stalking Leon and Retasu…

"I was anxiously waiting to meet Retasu's new boyfriend" Zakuro then added calmly and with a little smile…

"B-B- _Boyfriend?_ " Retasu squealed as her face went entirely red and jets of steam came out of her head. She fainted and Leon caught her before she could hit the floor…

"When she wakes up, tell her she'll be heading back to Kanagawa prefecture for the real mission" Ryou said. "And the rest of you girls too"

Ichigo, Masaya and Minto reacted with shock, Bu-Ling seemed excited, Zakuro barely reacted…

"In the meantime, Keiichiro and I will be studying the captured Parasite Alien that Dr. Seto here brought to us" Ryou said while pointing with his hand at Andr, who was already holding four familiar-looking different shoes, two on each hand. The shocked girls looked down to find themselves missing one shoe each…

"Wow, he's good" Keiichiro commented…

Some hours later, Retasu and Leon got out of the Mew Mew café and Retasu started walking towards the train station, but she noticed Leon was taking a different route…

"Um… Leon-san, the train station is that way" she pointed out…

"I'm sorry, but I don't wanna get close to one of those infernal machines ever again in my life" Leon said. "See you at Kanagawa!"

Leon then started sprinting, his cybernetics granting him the necessary speed and agility…

"You _sprinted_ all the way from Kanagawa prefecture to here?" an astonished Retasu said…


	4. Clashing beliefs

Back at the Kanagawa prefecture, Leon and Retasu were the first sent for their mission, with the rest of the group soon to follow. Retasu blushed and didn't dare to look at Leon. Despite his ruthless fighting methods, he had ultimately fought a monster to save her life and even massaged her feet. Her heart was confused, as she couldn't exactly tell whether Leon was good or bad…

Leon felt awkward too. He couldn't really think of a conversation topic, and he just stared at Retasu's feet as she walked beside him. He was not particularly subtle about it, causing Retasu to blush, embarrassed but feeling pretty…

The two would have stayed silent for the entire chapter if not for the scream of a seemingly random boy with short dark blue hair. " _Yuka!_ "

Leon and Retasu found the boy desperately trying to tend to a fainted girl with shoulder-length brown hair…

"Is everything okay?" Retasu asked as she approached them, Leon slowly following behind her…

"Yuka's health is a little frail, that's all. She fainted on today's hot weather" the boy explained…

"Could her pressure have gone too low? She needs some sugar, quick!" Retasu urged…

Leon then searched his pocket and took out a piece of chocolate he was saving for his own consumption later…

"That will do! Thanks, Leon-san!" Retasu said as she took the sweet snack and fed it to Yuka. The girl slowly opened her eyes as her pressure stabilized…

"Kakeru-kun…" Yuka said weakly to the boy, who sighed in relief…

"Is she your girlfriend?" Retasu said with a friendly smile…

" _What?_ No! Of course not!" Kakeru replied nervously, looking away and blushing…

"Such vehement denial can only mean you _are_ her boyfriend!" Retasu said happily. This caused Yuka to blush brightly and timidly cover her face with her hands while making an utterly adorable sound, unable to hide how flattered and embarrassed she felt…

"Or maybe he really _really_ wants to drive the point home that he doesn't love her" Leon said…

"Don't be silly! Of course they love each other! Look at how Kakeru-san did his best to take care of his ill lover!" Retasu exclaimed…

"We're just friends! …And that's what friends do, right?" Kakeru said, still blushing and looking downwards…

"Kakeru-kun!" Yuka said as she hugged Kakeru lovingly…

" _Awwww!_ That's the cutest thing I ever saw!" Retasu said with her eyes briefly turning into pink hearts due to cuteness overload…

"On the other hand, the girl's love for the boy can be seen from a mile away" Leon admitted…

"I wish you two a happy life together! Have lots of kids, okay?" Retasu said happily to them…

Yuka smiled happily at Retasu, but Kakeru seemed too embarrassed to even want to show his face…

Leon and Retasu walked away from the couple…

"Do you always carry such cute thoughts in your head?" Leon asked…

"All the time! Good things happen to the people who think positively. At least that's what my parents say" Retasu replied, her mood uplifted by the recent event…

"Indeed, your way of thinking is beautiful… but it's wrong" Leon said…

"Why is it wrong?" Retasu asked…

"The boy doesn't love the girl back. Didn't you look at him? He was completely _ashamed_ of her!" Leon said…

"Oh… You're from a different country, Leon-san. Maybe that's why you don't understand the way romance works here in Japan" Retasu said…

"Care to explain?" Leon asked…

Retasu stopped and stood in front of Leon. "You see… um… how do I explain it? …Here in Japan we appreciate formal and respectful people who are able to keep their composure at all times. On the other hand, a hot-blooded person who does big displays of emotion is… well… kinda weird for us"

"So?" Leon said…

"Well… uh… I know! I'll use my friend's story as an example! She was once in a love triangle with two boys who _badly_ wanted her. One of them was quiet, respectful and would mind her personal space. The other one stole her first kiss, made bold advances towards her and was willing to scream his love for her to the four winds… Which one do you believe she chose?"

"The quiet one, right?" Leon asked…

"That's right. You saw them together at the café. They don't go around shoving it into everybody's faces, but it's still evident they deeply love each other just from noticing they hold hands as they walk together" Retasu said…

"That doesn't explain why that Kakeru guy outright _denied_ being that Yuka girl's boyfriend" Leon said…

"He just didn't want to make a scandal of his love! Besides, why wouldn't he love such a cute girl? Please don't be so negative, Leon-san!" Retasu said…

"It's a one-sided crush. I've seen literally _dozens_ of them. They won't last" Leon said…

"Leon-san, why are you so cynical?" Retasu asked with sad eyes…

"Why are you so idealistic?" Leon asked back coldly…

"Leon-san… When you killed Kasumi…" Retasu said, looking downwards sadly…

"That's what fighting is like. It's kill or be killed. That's how the world works" Leon said…

"That is not true!" Retasu said, bravely but politely looking at Leon's eyes in defiance. "I've been in literally dozens of battles and never had to resort to killing the opponent! Just weakening them and getting the Parasite Alien out of them was enough!"

"Maybe your previous enemies were so weak you could afford that. But that night the jellyfish girl almost ripped you apart" Leon replied. "If I hadn't slain her, you'd be dead now"

Retasu's eyes saddened."I feel sorry for you" she said…

"You do?" Leon asked…

"Yes. You must have been through a lot of pain to develop such a mindset" Retasu said, genuinely sad for him. "People must have abused you constantly throughout your life, and because of that you came to the conclusion that this is a dog-eat-dog world. You poor thing"

Leon stayed silent for several seconds. "…Well, I brought it upon myself, after all. I guess I had it coming to me" he said, leaving Retasu surprised and intrigued…

Meanwhile, the other Mew Mews had arrived at the Kanagawa prefecture few hours later…

"Was it necessary to drag your boyfriend along with you, Ichigo?" Minto questioned…

"I came here of my own will" Masaya replied…

"My Masaya-kun loves me so much and he will protect me!" an enamored Ichigo said, rubbing herself onto Masaya's body like a cat, even purring for him. He smiled happily at her…

"Focus on the mission, you two. Who knows how many other Chimera Anima may be lurking in this place?" said Zakuro…

"But we already said bye-bye to Tart-kun and the others! Who could be controlling the Chimera Anima then?" Bu-Ling asked…

"Maybe a new alien enemy?" Ichigo said…

"Didn't we make peace with the aliens?" Minto asked…

"Maybe it's a _different_ alien race" Masaya suggested…

Ichigo's cell phone ringtone sounded. She immediately picked the phone up. "It's Ryou!" she said as she accepted the call. "Hello?"

"Are you fooling around with your boyfriend again or you're actually working this time?" Ryou teased Ichigo…

"What do you want?" Ichigo yelled angrily…

"The three of us have been analyzing the Parasite Alien that Leon and Dr. Seto captured. The result is astonishing" Ryou said…

"What did you boys find out" Ichigo asked…

"This Parasite Alien has been genetically altered by someone" Ryou revealed…

"Is it a new alien invasion?" Ichigo asked…

"Negative… It appears to be the work of human technology" Ryou said, shocking Ichigo with the revelation…

By afternoon, kendo class at the local highschool was on its way, and Kakeru was having a kendo match. He showed a decent level of skill, but was ultimately defeated by his opponent. " _Point!_ " the referee shouted as he declared Kakeru's opponent the winner…

With the match over, Kakeru took off his mask. "Well fought, Misuzu-san" Kakeru congratulated his opponent…

The opponent took her mask off to reveal herself as a very attractive and strong-looking girl with long red hair. "Thanks. You've improved since our last match" Misuzu said…

Yuka was timidly hiding, stalking Kakeru from afar, but apparently having heard him. When Kakeru walked out of the kendo class, Yuka was waiting for him…

"Yuka?" Kakeru said, surprised…

"Kakeru-kun… You called her by her first name…" Yuka said, very sad…

"I did?" Kakeru said, looking confused…

Yuka suddenly ran away crying. "Wait! Yuka!" Kakeru shouted, but he didn't run after her…

"Is she crying again?" Misuzu asked as she walked out behind Kakeru…

"Yuka is like a fragile, harmless bunny. So easily wounded…" Kakeru said with sadness in his eyes. "If we someday got into some sort of fight, I would have to protect her" he added…

"She would burden you, right?" Misuzu said…

"Yes…" Kakeru said, and then he turned around towards Misuzu with a little smile. "She's not a tigress like you, Misuzu-san. You and I could battle side-by-side and kick butt together like any self-respecting couple should!" he said…

Misuzu then gently wrapped her arms around Kakeru's neck. Kakeru did the same around Misuzu's waist. "How about we engage in another of our warrior rituals?" Misuzu said seductively, winking an eye at Kakeru…

"It would be an honor" Kakeru said as he kissed Misuzu…

Some hours later, Yuka had made her way out of the city and to a hill near a forest. She stepped up the long stone stairs that led to an inn on the top. Instead of going all the way up, Yuka stopped at a teahouse that was located halfway up the stairs. " _Why_ doesn't Kakeru-kun love me? Kakeru-kun is _mine!_ It's not my fault that I'm such a weakling!" she complained while sitting inside the teahouse and crying…

"You're right! He's a real jerk, isn't he?" a woman's nonchalant voice was heard. Yuka saw a woman with short hair and fox-like facial features approach her…

"W-Who are you?" Yuka said, scared and with the tears still in her eyes…

"His only problem with you is that you're weak, right? The good news is that can be fixed" the woman with the fox-like face said, and then showed Yuka another modified Parasite Alien like the one that possessed Kasumi. "This is a lucky charm that will turn karma against any boyfriend who cheats on you"

Yuka stared at the Parasite Alien, tempted by its sinister glow…


	5. The harmless bunny bites back

That night, inside the old traditional Japanese house of a family of samurai lineage, Kakeru and Misuzu had gotten naked and got together under the futon to do their "warrior ritual". What they didn't know was that Yuka was stalking Kakeru once again…

"Kakeru-kun… you really…" Yuka cried quietly. The poor girl had to endure the moans of pleasure of the two lovers all the way until the climax…

When both lovers calmed down, they stared into each other's eyes. "Please be my battle partner for life, Misuzu-san" Kakeru said…

"I will fight by your side forever, Kakeru-kun" Misuzu replied…

Yuka snapped and opened the door, startling them both, making Misuzu squeal…

" _Don't call each other by your first names!_ " Yuka cried…

"Y-Yuka! I-I can explain! Really!" Kakeru said…

"Explain what? That you'd rather have sex with her instead of me just because she's a strong fighter and I'm weak? It's not like I didn't try to be helpful to you! In the end, you see me as nothing but a harmless bunny that cannot even defend itself!" Yuka cried furiously…

Kakeru got up from the futon. "Yuka, calm down!" he said…

Yuka was having none of it. The Parasite Alien within her body lent her its power. Yuka transformed into a big and chubby white rabbit-like Chimera Anima with red bloodshot eyes…

"It's a monster!" Kakeru shouted, and immediately grabbed the nearest katana to confront Monster Yuka. Misuzu immediately followed suit. "We can defeat it if we fight toge…"

Yuka lunged at Kakeru mid-sentence with her huge mouth wide open. Kakeru's headless body lay lifeless on the wooden floor while blood dripped from Yuka's mouth. Misuzu screamed in sheer terror. Yuka attacked her next…

By next morning, the police was already investigating the crime scene…

"We are reporting live from Kanagawa prefecture as yet another teenage couple has been brutally murdered by an unidentified killer. The victims have been identified as Misuzu Kusano and Kakeru Satsune" said the news reporter. Retasu reacted with shock and sadness as Kakeru's name reminded her of the couple she and Leon had met the day prior. "It is believed that a wild animal entered the house during the night, as one of the victims is apparently missing a large bite-shaped chunk of her torso. However, the exact size and shape of the bite doesn't seem to match any known animal. We will keep you informed" the reporter said…

"They've begun moving again" Andr said as he was talking on the phone, watching the news from the bunker under his house now that he was back at Kanagawa…

"But why do these Chimera Anima target teenagers specifically?" Ryou asked on the other end of the line, watching the same news program from his base under the Mew Mew café…

"That's what has me confused. There is no real tactical advantage to these murders, so I doubt it's a systematic alien invasion like five years ago. However, there's no doubt someone is behind the curtain deploying these Chimera Anima on the city" Andr said…

"Did the girls get there safely?" Ryou asked…

"All five of them are here, plus Leon and Miss Ichigo's fiancé" Andr replied…

"Ichigo's fiancé? What's _he_ doing there? He lost his powers after the war with the aliens was over!" Ryou said. "Anyway… have the Mew Mews start tracking down the Chimera Anima at once! We can't allow any more victims!" Ryou said…

"That's for sure. I shall keep you informed of any developments" Andr said before hanging the phone. He then turned towards the girls. "Your commander said you start tracking the Chimera Anima at once"

"No problem! Now that Ryou and Keiichiro have modified Masha to detect the new breed of Chimera Anima, it should be easy to find it wherever it's hiding!" Ichigo said happily…

"It should be easy to find it!" the fluffy little robot happily repeated Ichigo's phrase while floating near her…

However, Retasu looked very sad. She was having a flashback of her conversation with Kasumi before she transformed into a jellyfish Chimera Anima. The Mew Mews all transformed and set out, splitting up to cover more terrain, Leon decided to go together with Retasu…

"Something you wanted to say?" Leon asked, while jumping across the rooftops alongside her…

"That night, I got to talk to the previous Chimera Anima before she transformed. She was Kasumi-san, and her reason for committing murder was because her boyfriend didn't treat her properly" Retasu said sadly…

"And this Chimera Anima probably has the same motive, right?" Leon replied…

"Leon-san… about our conversation yesterday, regarding the couple we met… You think Yuka-san would…?" Retasu asked, about to cry…

"That depends on whether Kakeru really considered her his girlfriend or not" Leon answered…

"Are you sure you're not picking up anything, Masha?" a confused Ichigo asked his little robot…

"Negative. No Chimera Anima found" Masha replied…

"It can't just vanish into thin air without explanation!" Ichigo said…

"It can't just vanish!" Masha repeated Ichigo's phrase…

"But Leon-san! We barely knew Yuka-san, didn't we? How will we know what places she frequented and such?" Retasu asked…

"Uh… We stumble upon her by luck?" Leon said. "All we know about her is that she loved that Kakeru guy. She seemed very clingy towards him"

"But if Kakeru-san is dead, then how can Yuka-san possibly cling to him now?" Retasu asked…

"Well, his body is most likely at the morgue now…" Leon said…

Realizing the implications, Retasu winced in disgust…

"That would be utterly gross" Leon said as he winced in disgust as well. "I think this girl has read a little too much Gore manga"

Luckily, Yuka hadn't entered the morgue yet. Leon and Retasu found her really close to its back door, though…

"Yuka-san!" Retasu called…

Yuka turned around slowly, showing a completely emotionless face. "They took Kakeru-kun here… The guards won't let me in… I want to stay with Kakeru-kun forever…"

"Yuka-san…" Retasu cried…

"Face it! He didn't love you! Move on with your life and find a man worthy of your feelings!" Leon said…

" _Leon-san!_ " Retasu screamed at him. "How can you say such a thing to her?"

"I made a promise to myself that I would marry Kakeru-kun… the Red String of Fate cannot be cut…" Yuka said. "If you try to keep me from fulfilling my promise, then I will eat you too!"

Yuka then transformed into her rabbit Chimera Anima form right in front of Leon and Retasu's eyes…

"Chimera Anima!" Masha shouted at the other end of the city, where he and Ichigo currently were. Ichigo immediately relayed the message to the others via the comm. device the Mew Mews were each given…

The first thing Yuka did was grabbing the nearby garbage container and throwing it at Leon and Retasu. Both of them dodged it by jumping in different directions…

"We'll have to kill her!" Leon said as he charged towards Yuka and punched her several times. Yuka punched back only once and sent Leon flying, but he managed to stabilize and barely achieve a safe landing…

"She hits pretty damn hard…" Leon said as he wiped his own blood from his mouth. "Retasu-chan!"

But Retasu didn't move. She just stood there, tears flowing from her eyes…

" _Retasu-chan!_ " Leon yelled…

"It was not Yuka-san's fault… She just found Kakeru-san cheating on her, and somebody took advantage of her moment of despair to turn her into a Chimera Anima!" Retasu cried. "This is too much! I can't attack poor Yuka-san!"

But Yuka _did_ lunge for Retasu. Luckily Leon dashed and punched Yuka just in time before she could chomp Retasu's head off…

"This is a fight, Retasu-chan! It's kill or be killed!" Leon said as he turned his arm into a cannon to fire at Yuka, but the rabbit Chimera Anima proved to be agile enough to dodge the plasma shots…

"Leon-san! Please don't kill her!" Retasu cried…

"We can't wait for your friends to arrive!" Leon replied as he continued shooting at Yuka. Retasu knew that if Leon managed to stun Yuka, she would have the same fate as Kasumi…

Yuka tore a nearby bench off the sidewalk and threw it at Leon and Retasu. Leon tackled Retasu out of the way and the bench missed them both…

From the floor Leon took aim with his arm cannon and fired several shots, stunning Yuka with them. It was the perfect chance. Leon screamed as he was about to go for the kill…

" _No!_ " Retasu cried as she hugged Leon from behind, not letting him kill the tragic monster…

" _Retasu-chan!_ " Leon shouted…

In a matter of seconds, Yuka recovered and lunged for Leon and Retasu with her mouth wide open…

" _Ribbon: Zakuro Spear!_ " Zakuro shouted as she attacked with her whip of purple fire, creating a blazing spiral that ignited Yuka…

Ichigo was the next to arrive, finding Yuka already weakened by Zakuro's attack. " _Ribbon: Strawberry Surprise!_ " she shouted, sending a powerful blast of light, so intensely bright that it forced the photosensitive Parasite Alien out of Yuka's body. The girl returned to human form and fell unconscious, with all the bruises and burns from the battle but still alive. The Parasite Alien didn't escape far, as Masha immediately opened its mouth and swallowed it whole, permanently disposing of it…

"Is everyone alright?" Ichigo asked…

"I'm ok" Leon answered…

"I'm fine… but Yuka-san…" Retasu cried…

"Retasu… You and Leon could have easily defeated this Chimera Anima if you really wanted to. What's wrong with you?" Zakuro said coldly…

"B-But… Leon-san was going to _kill_ her, and I just…" Retasu replied…

"You were just being too soft!" Zakuro interrupted her…

"T-That's not true!" Retasu cried. "Yuka-san was possessed by a Parasite Alien! She murdered her boyfriend against her will! Right, Ichigo?"

Ichigo's eyes turned sad. "You left earlier than us, so you didn't get the result of Ryou's analysis"

"What result?" Retasu asked…

"These new Parasite Aliens were genetically altered. They can't control their hosts, only give them power. That explained why the Chimera Anima could talk coherently and think, not to mention transform at will… Retasu… This girl was fully lucid and conscious when she killed her boyfriend and his lover. She committed murder voluntarily" Zakuro revealed…

"That… _That can't be!_ " Retasu said, and then got on her knees and wept…

"What are we going to do with her?" Ichigo asked…

"I don't approve of killing her, but I say the court should choose her sentence" Zakuro said…

Minutes later, the police arrested Yuka. She was first taken to the hospital, but would be put in prison later…

"Ugh… I hate it when romances end this way" Andr said as he watched the patrol car drive away. "If only guys treated their girlfriends better, this shit wouldn't happen"


	6. The witness

The sun was setting at the Kanagawa prefecture. Somewhere in the city, a 24-years-old woman with long brown hair and an ahoge walked back and forth angrily. "What's taking her so long?" she ranted…

"Maybe she got sidetracked" a 22-years-old woman in kendo clothes who carried a wooden katana replied to her…

"I knew this plan wouldn't work! We just ended up attracting a group of magical girls and a fighting cyborg! Two of our monsters were already taken down!" the woman with the ahoge complained…

"But we have a lot more of them, don't we?" the one with the wooden sword said…

"I'm back" said the 26-years-old woman with short hair and fox-like facial features…

"Well, Kitsune? Who is it this time?" the one with the ahoge asked, losing her patience…

"I met this girl whose boyfriend would flirt with every attractive female he came across" the fox-like one said as she had a quick flashback about offering a Parasite Alien to a girl with long straight black hair and green clothes. It happened in front of a teahouse, halfway up some stone stairs leading up a hill, near a forest. "Unfortunately, her boyfriend did come for her after all, and he saw me" she said as she remembered the young man spying on her from behind a tree…

The one with the ahoge facepalmed. " _Great!_ Now we have a witness!" she complained sarcastically…

"Just tell me who he is. I will cut him" the one with the wooden sword offered…

The woman with the ahoge finally reached her patience limit, and got so angry she punched a concrete wall. The entire concrete wall shattered without damaging the woman's fist at all…

"Did that feel good?" the fox-like one asked her…

"It's not the same when _he_ 's not around to take it" the one with the ahoge said as she angrily walked away. "I'm going to vent my anger on him! You make sure that witness is silenced, Kitsune!"

"Come with me, Motoko. We have some work to do" the fox-like one said to the one with the wooden sword…

Meanwhile, Retasu was sitting at a bench in the park, looking sad as she remembered the events of the latest battle. "It's true! I'm too soft! I should have attacked Yuka-san instead of stand there doing nothing! What's wrong with me?" she thought…

At that moment, she suddenly felt something on her foot. She immediately looked down and saw a pair of hands gently stealing her right flat…

"Dr. Seto! What are you doing?" Retasu squealed cutely…

"Please just call me Andr… I'm just letting you show off this gorgeous foot of yours" Andr replied as he gave Retasu's now-bare foot a gentle loving caress…

"Tee-hee-hee! No! That tickles!" she giggled happily, blushing and feeling flattered…

Andr got out from under the bench and sat beside her, with Retasu's flat still in his hand. "Is anything troubling you, Retasu-chan?"

Retasu nodded. "Why is everything so dark, violent and tragic in this city? People get killed, lovers turn on each other, and the closest you have to a hero seems to have no moral code!" she said with tears in her eyes. "Is it really kill or be killed in this place?"

"It's not the city specifically that is like this. The world in general works this way" Andr said, brooding into the distance with sudden seriousness, but still in a gentle voice…

"That's not true! There isn't so much death and hate where I come from!" Retasu argued, still in tears…

"…It's just my guess, but I think that's because you and your friends have the right tools at hand to solve your conflicts without bloodshed. Your friend Ichigo is able to harmlessly undo the fusion between the Chimera Anima and its host. That's the sort of thing Leon and I lack" Andr replied…

"Yes, I understand that, but… Kill or be killed? What horrible things did poor Leon-san go through to develop such an unhealthy mindset?" Retasu said…

"I thought you'd be angry at Leon" Andr said…

"I always try to see the best in everybody" Retasu admitted…

Andr blushed and chuckled "I see! You're just like… Never mind"

Andr suddenly looked down and his eyes saddened…

"What? Just like who?" a confused Retasu said…

"Leon and I have simply lost faith in humanity, that's all. Saving the Earth from an alien invasion is one thing, but how do you save humans from themselves?" Andr said…

"…By showing them compassion when they need it?" Retasu replied…

Andr chuckled. "You really _are_ like her… Retasu-chan, so far you had only fought mindless monsters made out of people who were hypnotized by aliens. You had never before seen _a person_ intentionally do horrible things to another… Believe me, it's not a pretty sight"

"And Leon-san had to see that too?" Retasu asked sadly…

" _Oh_ did he! …Retasu-chan, some humans are so rotten that, once past a certain point, they can no longer be reasoned with or redeemed. Leon and I learned that the hard way" Andr said…

"…But you and Leon-san can still be redeemed, right?" Retasu said…

"Leon and I?" Andr asked, surprised…

"Yes! Now I understand how hurt your hearts are, but that doesn't mean you can't be better people than those who wronged you! Show them that you're not monsters like them!" Retasu said…

Andr responded by kneeling down and lovingly kissing Retasu's bare foot. "She and you are like two water droplets. Make sure you find yourself a good man who treats you with love and care"

Then Andr gently put Retasu's shoe back on her foot and walked away. Retasu blushed and smiled fondly as she watched him go…

" _Oh, my God!_ It's a love triangle!" Ichigo suddenly screamed, excited and happy, hiding in a bush with Minto and Bu-Ling who were just as excited…

"Have you girls been watching us the entire time?" a shocked Retasu asked…

"Some real-life dramas are more interesting than romance novels" Minto replied…

"Who do you love more? Dr. Seto or his robot?" Bu-Ling asked excitedly…

"Although a human doing it with a robot would be weird" Minto commented with slight disgust…

"But she has to choose _one_! She can't marry both!" Ichigo said…

"Girls! I'm neither one's girlfriend yet!" Retasu squealed…

"You said _yet_ … That's the keyword" Minto said with her arms folded, eyes closed and nodding with a confident smile…

"That means you're planning on choosing one!" Ichigo exclaimed happily…

Retasu blushed and covered her face. She couldn't exactly deny what Ichigo just said…

At night, the young man with black hair tied into a short ponytail at the lower back of his head was running for his life as a big boomerang blade almost struck him, strong enough to break the concrete wall of the building it hit. From an alley came a mantis-like Chimera Anima with the face and naked torso of a well-endowed woman, her scythe-like arms being the source of her boomerang. She was hell-bent on killing her cheating boyfriend…

" _Chimera Anima!_ " Masha shouted meanwhile. The Tokyo Mew Mew all transformed and jumped into action, with Leon following close behind Retasu…

Retasu herself looked very bothered as she remembered the latest battle and Zakuro telling her that she was too soft. "Yes, I may be too soft, but I'm not a murderer. Even if these new Chimera Anima willingly commit atrocities, I'm sure there must be a way to talk them out of it! These new ones _can_ reason, after all!" she thought to herself…

At that moment, the escaping young man who witnessed the offering of the Parasite Alien to his heartbroken girlfriend showed up, bumping into Ichigo and leaving them both dizzied on the floor…

"Are you okay, Ichigo-san?" Retasu asked. She and Bu-Lung helped Ichigo get up while Minto and Zakuro helped up the young man. Soon the mantis-like Chimera Anima appeared…

"Are you those Meow Meow girls?" the young man asked desperately. "You've got to help me! My girlfriend was turned into that thing by a kitsune!"

Everyone listening to him was surprised, but they had no time to ask him any questions because the mantis Chimera Anima had already thrown another boomerang. All of them jumped out of the way of the attack, Ichigo carrying the witness…

"Well, there's only one thing left to do" Leon said as he transformed his arm cannon. The witness was instantly horrified at the implication…

" _No!_ Leon-san, we're _not_ killing her!" Retasu said as she clung to Leon's arm…

"Retasu is right! Here, I have another mission for you! You and Retasu take this guy to a safe place and ask him about what he saw! The rest of us are taking care of Miss Mantis here!" Ichigo said, leaving the witness in Retasu and Leon's care…

The mantis Chimera Anima saw the target of her wrath running away with Retasu and Leon and tried to go for them, only for Ichigo to jump-kick her in the face…

" _Hello!_ We are your opponents now!" Ichigo said…

" _Ribbon: Mint Echo!_ " Minto said, flying from an angle and firing an arrow made of wind that hit the Chimera Anima…

"Why are you protecting him? Did he offer you to bear his children too?" the mantis Chimera Anima shouted furiously…

"It spoke!" surprised Minto said. "And its statement actually made sense!"

"No! We're protecting him because murdering people is wrong!" Ichigo yelled back at the Chimera Anima…

"You wouldn't be saying that if _your_ boyfriend had cheated on you!" the monster replied angrily as she threw another boomerang and forced everyone to jump out of her way, the impact leaving a trench on the pavement. With the way cleared, the Chimera Anima went full speed ahead towards her target…

"It even gave a coherent response!" a very surprised Minto commented…

" _Who cares?_ She's escaping!" Ichigo said as she was the first to run after the monster, with the others soon following…

As Retasu and Leon were running away with the young man they were escorting, Retasu looked back and saw the Chimera Anima coming. "She's coming this way!" Retasu screamed…

Leon immediately turned back and started punching the Chimera Anima. After about three painful punches to the face and abdomen, the mantis-like monster girl counterattacked with a slash of her scythe-like arm, with enough force to send Leon flying back about five meters…

" _Leon-san!_ " Retasu screamed as she ran back to check on Leon. The mantis Chimera Anima's blade had easily cut through his clothes and artificial skin, exposing his cybernetics, but his metallic inner structure only received surface damage…

"You won't escape me, you cheating bastard!" the mantis monster girl screamed furiously at the young man she used to love, starting to chase him again as he ran away, but Leon quickly got up and used his arm cannon to shoot her several times on the back, stunning her…

Ichigo and the others arrived just in time to deal with the Chimera Anima, but the man they were protecting was still running away. Minto immediately flew forward and blocked him. "Where do you think you're going?" she asked him rhetorically…

" _Ribbon: Strawberry Surprise!_ " Ichigo shouted, shining her light at the monster girl…

" _Nooooooo!_ " the girl shouted as the Parasite Alien was expelled from her body and she returned to human form. The parasite was promptly eaten by Masha…

With the battle over, it was time to interrogate the witnesses…


	7. Fight amongst the allies

The girl with black long straight hair and green clothes, who had just been turned back into a human, stood there surrounded by the Tokyo Mew Mew and Leon. She was about to cry. Minto forced her fleeing boyfriend to stand in front of her…

" _You blasted cheater!_ " the girl screamed as she tried to attack the young man with her bare hands, but Ichigo held her back…

The cheating boyfriend tried to run away, but Minto pulled him back into the circle. " _Not so fast!_ You first owe an apology to the lady!" she said…

"Uh… I… I'm sorry, Sango-chan" the young man said to his angry girlfriend while blushing, looking away and rubbing the back of his head. He didn't sound sincere…

"You'll have to do _a little_ better than that if you really love her" Minto said with sarcasm…

" _He doesn't love me!_ " Sango cried. "He just continues to propose to every other girl he meets and asking them if they want to bear his children!"

All five of the Tokyo Mew Mew were disgusted. Even Zakuro couldn't keep a straight face…

"Maybe we got the wrong monster here" Ichigo said…

"You girls forget why we have them here in the first place" Leon said, and then he stared somewhat menacingly and the cheating boyfriend. "Tell us all about that supposed kitsune you saw!"

"Right…" the young man said, visibly ashamed. "I said a kitsune, but I really meant this woman with a really _sexy_ fox-like face…"

Sango clenched her teeth and fists, wishing to kill the bastard, but Minto decided to do the girl a favor and comically punch him over the head instead, though not at full strength. "Focus more on the facts and less on the sexiness, if you were so kind!"

"Hmph… It's simple! He was cheating on me, despite saying multiple times that he loved me! I couldn't take it anymore! I was crying and wallowing in despair, so I went to the teahouse near the Legendary Inn, where the woman with the fox-like face gave me that jellyfish thing as a lucky charm so I could get revenge on him! I happily accepted! Maybe _that_ would teach him to value a woman!" Sango said angrily and with tears on her eyes…

"Legendary Inn?" Retasu thought, surprised as she remembered when the old lady told her about it…

The boy looked sad as he heard his girlfriend confess her intentions. "Did I really hurt you that much?"

" _You shameless manslut!_ " Sango cried furiously as she tried to attack the boy again, with Ichigo and Zakuro having to hold her together. The boy watched in shock, not even feeling like running away anymore. Sango stopped, breathing heavily and raining tears on the pavement. " _Why_ can't you see that we're bound to be together? Do you have any idea how much I love you?"

"Maybe it's time for you to move on and find yourself a better man" Leon said…

"B-But… I promised it to myself! …The Red String…!" Sango tried to make up an excuse…

"Accept it! The man's trash! Throw him away and find a new one!" Leon said. The young man that Leon was insulting just lowered his head and let Leon speak shit of him…

"Leon-san! You can't just tell her to love another man just like that!" Retasu said…

"Yeah! That would be betrayal!" Ichigo said. Retasu blushed as she heard her friend say this, looking ashamed…

"…What?" Leon replied with a look of disbelief at a statement that sounded absurd to him…

"Wow, he really _is_ foreign, huh?" Minto commented…

"Leon-san! I don't know how things are in Spain or wherever you came from but, here in Japan, human interaction is the most basic of needs! More than food and water, even! You cannot do such things as break a promise or cut your ties with people who mean a lot to you!" Retasu explained somewhat sadly…

"Exactly! In Japan we have this thing called _loyalty_! We never stop loving someone we hold dear, even if that person doesn't love us back!" Ichigo added. Hearing this caused Retasu so sadly start thinking of Ryou…

"Is that why Japanese girls never move on from the very first guy they fall in love with? With a mindset like that it's no wonder every girl is so unhappy around here!" Leon said…

Leon's statement abruptly woke Retasu up from her thought. " _Leon-san!_ How can you…?"

"He's right" the cheating young man finally conceded, surprising everybody. "Sango-chan… I don't deserve your love. I'm just so desperate for some sex, and there's nothing even remotely good about me!" he said with a smile and sad eyes, though showing no tears…

"That's not true! You're a very smart person and besides you're cute! If only you were faithful to me I'd be happy to be your girl!" Sango replied, eyes still teary…

"I know… But you deserve better, Sango-chan" the young man said. "When I said the woman with the fox-like facial features was sexy, I wasn't just being a pervert. The culprit you're looking for is definitely a well-endowed woman with short green hair and eyes seemingly always closed" the guy said seriously to the Mew Mews and Leon…

The witness then started walking away, but stopped for one last thing to say. "She must be looking for other desperate girlfriends to tempt them with power and turn them into monsters… You must save those girls before any more murders happen. Please stop that fox woman"

And with that, he left the scene, and the Mew Mews watched his heartbroken girlfriend walk away…

"That's going to be a stain on her honor" Retasu commented, feeling sorry for Sango…

"No! Moving on from a man who wronged you and finding a better guy is a _good_ thing!" Leon said…

"No, It isn't! We've always been a clan-based society! Cutting ties with someone, especially a person we love, is betraying him!" Minto said.

Retasu started thinking of Ryou once more, again showing signs of being ashamed. "What am I doing? …It's true that Shirogane-san already has a girlfriend, but that doesn't mean I can…" she thought…

Leon closed his eyes and pondered the situation for several seconds. "I'm trying to be understanding of your culture, I really am… but this whole thing of marry your first love or you'll be dishonored for life sounds like _bullshit_ to me!" he said, which offended the Mew Mews…

"Why? Social interaction means everything to us!" Ichigo said. "What good is plenty of food and water to survive if you don't have friends or family to share your moments with? That's why we always remain loyal to the people close to us, no matter what!" Ichigo said…

"And sacrifice your own happiness by letting a bastard boyfriend walk all over you? Just because your honor is more important than _your own life_?" Leon said, starting to lose patience…

"And why are you making such a big fuss of it, anyway?" Minto asked…

"Because it causes these girls so much meaningless pain" Leon said as his voice mellowed out slightly and his normally angry eyes wend slightly sadder. Retasu was the most surprised by this sudden sign of empathy from the normally harsh cyborg warrior…

Leon turned his back on the Mew Mews…

"We should just let the Chimera Anima kill those people!" he suddenly said, shocking all of them…

" _What_ did you say?" Ichigo screamed…

"But… We can't let that happen, Leon-san! It's not right to let the Chimera Anima get away with those murders! It doesn't matter who the victim is!" Retasu said…

Leon looked back at them. "One of them made his girlfriend feel ugly! Another one dumped his because she wasn't useful in battle to him! A third one caused his girl to feel tossed aside by flirting with others! It's no wonder those girls turned into murderous monsters!" he yelled angrily, and then went back to brooding. "I sympathize more with the monsters than with the trash they kill"

"Alright, we see your point! Those boyfriends are horrible people for making their girls sad! But we _still_ aren't letting any more murders happen!" Ichigo said firmly…

Leon slowly turned around to face the Mew Mews. "How about I kill those boyfriends myself, then?" he said, turning his arm into a cannon to drive the point home…

"You wouldn't dare!" a shocked Ichigo exclaimed…

"Would you try to stop me?" Leon asked…

" _Of course we would!_ " Ichigo shouted. All five Mew Mews got into combat stance…

The communicator in Leon's body suddenly activated on its own. "Leon! Stop this right now! You can't risk our alliance for this!" Andr's voice yelled over the comm…

"We're better off if we let those bastard boyfriends die, Andr!" Leon yelled back…

"Leon, do _not_ fight the Mew Mews! Our alliance will break if you hurt them, and we can't succeed without them!" Andr shouted…

"What are we going to achieve if we succeed? What are we _trying_ to achieve? Punish heartbroken girlfriends for the shit their boyfriends did to them?" Leon shouted louder…

"Leon-san, please stop!" Retasu pleaded…

"You'll have to stop me yourself!" Leon yelled as he fired his arm cannon at the Mew Mews, successfully stunning Minto and Bu-Ling with his plasma shots…

Ichigo and Zakuro decided they were not having Leon's bullshit and charged at him. Both girls were able to kick Leon around for a couple of seconds before he punched them away with such force he sent Ichigo flying high and Zakuro through a wall…

"He can punch pretty hard…" Zakuro said between clenched teeth as she slowly got up and wiped the blood from her mouth…

Minto recovered from the stunning effect and flew out of the reach of Leon's fists. " _Ribbon: Mint Echo!_ " she shouted as she used her bow to fire an arrow of wind…

Bu-Ling recovered as well. " _Ribbon: Pudding Inferno!_ " she shouted as she threw her tambourine rolling on the ground with such force it created a trench…

Leon was faced with a combined assault from both ground and air, but he jumped just low enough to jump over Bu-Ling's tambourine but below Minto's arrow…

"How did he pull _that_ off?" Minto said…

Leon then demonstrated another impressive feat by jumping all the way to Minto's current height. She could have flown higher, but didn't expect Leon to be able to jump more than 3 meters. Leon clasped both hands together and hammered Minto down, causing her to crash onto the floor…

As soon as Leon landed, however, he found himself face to face with Bu-Ling's monkey-like martial arts style. The youngest Mew Mew was able to land many hits on Leon in rapid succession while dodging his counterattacks with monkey-like agility. Meanwhile Retasu helped Minto get up. However, Leon's system eventually adapted to Bu-Ling's moves and with a loud scream he punched her away as well. Bu-Ling managed to avoid a rough landing thanks to her agility, but her cheek was aching…

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu shouted, fed up herself with Leon's nonsense, and blasted him with a water attack that he seemingly could have dodged, but didn't. However, after the watery explosion, the Mew Mews saw the somewhat battered cyborg still standing…

"He's worse than a Chimera Anima!" Minto commented…

"We need to fight with our full strength to beat him!" Ichigo said…

But before they could do anything, Leon opened fire on them again, this time turning both arms into cannons and raining down stun shots on them…

"Leon! That's enough!" Andr shouted through the comm…

Leon wouldn't listen to Andr, and charged at the Mew Mews to finish them off…

" _Goddammit, Leon!_ You forced me to do this!" Andr yelled as his patience reached its limit…

Due to not having his powers anymore, Masaya had stayed at the hideout with Andr, and he saw him open a secret lid on the control panel and flip a kill switch. Just as he was about to reach the Mew Mews to beat the crap out of them, Leon's red eyes suddenly turned black, his body quickly lost all strength and he collapsed on the floor. The Mew Mews were scared at first, Retasu cautiously poked Leon's body twice with her foot, but there was no response…

"Is he dead?" Ichigo asked…

"What did you do?" Masaya asked Andr…

"When you build a combat cyborg, you want to have a way to turn him off, just in case he gets drunk on his own power" Andr said, trying to hide his frustration behind a small smile. "This isn't the first time it happens"


	8. The girl Andr loves

Later that night, the cheating young man who told Leon and the Mew Mews about the fox-like woman had already arrived home. He was staring at a photo of himself and his now ex-girlfriend who had been turned into a monster because of him. They looked very lovey-dovey in the picture, far from the truth…

"What are you doing staring at a picture of her? Don't say you love her after all the perverted stuff you did! Or maybe you're looking at her boobs!" a familiar-sounding voice said to him inside his room…

The horrified young man turned around to see the fox-like woman and the woman with the wooden katana…

"How did you get in?" he asked…

"Next time, don't use your window to escape your enraged girlfriend and then leave it opened. We just needed to hide in your room while you were gone and wait for you to come back" the fox-like woman said…

"Good… It would be creepy if you could just teleport into my room whenever you wanted to… heh heh…" said the young man as he slowly retreated towards said open window. The woman with the wooden katana immediately blocked his escape with unbelievable speed…

"You just had to spill it all, didn't you?" the fox-like woman said. "You told them basically everything but my name and bank account number!"

The young man was trembling in fear, but nevertheless he grabbed whatever hard thing he could find on the shelf and tried to hit the fox-like woman on the head with it, only for her to easily dodge and knee him hard in the stomach, making him vomit blood…

"Speaking of my name, it's Mitsune Konno. Nice to meet you! And my partner here is named Motoko Aoyama" the fox-like woman finally introduced herself and her accomplice respectively. "I'm telling you this because it's something you'll never get to tell anyone about… Motoko! Please do your thing!"

Motoko smirked as she drew her wooden katana, and with a loud kiai scream she slashed the young man with it. The young man's blood splattered on the wall, followed by the sound of his dead body collapsing on the floor…

At that moment, the phone rang. Then Sango's voice was heard on the speaker. "Hello? Are you there? Please reply to me…"

The woman named Mitsune picked up the phone. "Sorry! Your perverted ex-boyfriend is not available right now!" she said mockingly…

"That voice… you are…" the terrified Sango said on the other side of the line…

"Don't worry. He'll never be able to hurt you again… _ever_ " Mitsune's voice said to her over the phone. Sango cried, understanding the implication…

Meanwhile, the Mew Mews had brought back the deactivated Leon to Andr's bunker under his house, where the young scientist immediately had Leon's shirtless body lay on the table and started the repair procedure…

"I'm glad you didn't break up our alliance because of this. I'm really sorry for what happened last night" Andr said…

"We understand why he was so mad…" Ichigo said…

"…but he'll have to apologize for insulting our culture while in our own country" Minto said with her arms folded and looking offended…

"For once we agree on something, Minto" Ichigo nodded…

"Um, Dr. Seto… Is Leon-san still alive?" Retasu asked…

"It's similar to a coma. Even while deactivated, his cybernetics still function at a minimum to keep his biological half alive" Andr answered…

"Why don't you reprogram him to be less violent?" Zakuro suggested…

"His biological brain is still there. There isn't much I can do about Leon's personality traits" Andr replied as he continued to repair Leon's body. "Aren't you tired? You girls should go get a deserved rest after what Leon and I put you through…"

While Andr stayed at the bunker in the basement repairing Leon, the girls and Masaya went back up to Andr's seemingly normal house…

"Well, it's not my mansion, but I suppose I can manage to sleep comfortably somehow" Minto said…

"Why are you complaining? My house doesn't even have any spare bedrooms!" Ichigo replied…

"I'm so sorry for you. I know it sucks to be poor" Minto said condescendingly, causing Ichigo's hair to bristle like that of an angry cat as she hissed at her and clenched her teeth, showing cat fangs…

The Mew Mews went to sleep. Ichigo and Masaya shared the same bed, and they wasted no time to have the fun they had long awaited for…

"Great! I had to choose the room next to the happy lovebirds!" Minto complained as she could hear Ichigo's happy moans and giggles coming from the other side of the wall. She plugged her ears with the pillow trying to not hear it…

Zakuro took the house's remaining bedroom while Bu-Ling and Retasu settled for the two extra bedrooms inside Andr's bunker. Andr wouldn't use any of them anyway as he would spend the entire night repairing Leon…

Retasu couldn't sleep. She got up in the middle of the night, went to the kitchen, and made some coffee that she then brought to Andr…

"Thanks a lot, Retasu-chan" Andr said as he walked away from Leon for a bit and took the cup of coffee…

"I figured you'd need it since you stayed up all night" Retasu said. While Andr was taking a rest, Retasu snooped around the lab. "What's behind this door?" she asked while looking at a door with a keypad…

"You sure you want to know?" Andr said…

"It's ok if you don't want to show me" Retasu said…

"Cover your eyes" Andr said as he walked towards the keypad so Retasu wouldn't see the input of the password…

The door opened to reveal the room where Andr stored all the shoes he stole. Each shoe was put on display together with an enlarged artistic photograph of the female bare foot it was taken from…

"It looks like an art gallery" a surprised Retasu said…

"It _is_ an art gallery" Andr replied…

Retasu looked at each picture and each shoe. The pictures were truly taken at the precise angle to show the most beautiful side of each of these girls' bare feet, and it soon became obvious that a lot of love and care was put into Andr's work. The shoes were also well-preserved. Many of them had been in Andr's collection for years…

She then noticed a certain green flat that looked familiar to her. "Hey! I know this shoe!" Retasu said to Andr…

Andr chuckled. "Yup… That's the flat I took from you the day we first met"

Retasu then looked up to see the artistic picture of her own foot. She felt flattered and embarrassed. "Feels a little strange to have a picture of my foot in someone's art gallery" she commented, and then noticed that Kasumi's foot was in the picture too, and that her red sneaker was right next to Retasu's green flat. Retasu felt sad when she looked at Kasumi's shoe…

"I'm sorry. I know not all the memories here are pleasant, but at least she won't be forgotten" Andr said…

At the very end of the hallway, one particular shoe was set apart from the rest. This particular shoe was protected in a box of armored glass, and its corresponding picture of the girl foot that once wore it, by far the biggest and most beautiful picture of the lot, was also similarly protected. However, once Retasu had the chance to look at said shoe from up close, it seemed to be nothing but an ordinary girl's shoe…

"Dr. Seto, why is this one shoe set apart from the rest? It looks just as normal as the others" Retasu asked…

Andr calmly walked up to her. "That's the jewel of my collection. You could say it has a lot of… sentimental value"

"May I ask about that?" Retasu asked timidly…

"This is the only shoe in my collection that was not stolen. Its owner gave it to me of her own will, as the other one got shredded by a train and she had no use for only one shoe" Andr explained…

"A train?" a shocked Retasu said…

"Her other shoe got stuck on the railroad, and if she hadn't been saved just in time, she wouldn't still be alive today, and I wouldn't have continued on living either" Andr said as he blushed intensely and his eyes got a sad look…

"That girl must have meant a lot to you" Retasu said, moved by Andr's story…

"That's for sure… I breathe for her. She is the reason why I keep on living" Andr said, staring with love at the picture of that girl's bare foot. "…And someday I hope to be reunited with her"

Retasu cried tears of joy, and if Japanese customs didn't dictate against it she would have hugged him…

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry" Andr said…

"But it's so beautiful!" Retasu cried…

"You can't resist a good romance story, can you?" Andr joked, smiling faintly…

By next morning, Andr flipped the switch again and reactivated Leon. The cyborg's black eyes lit back up to their red color, and he slowly sat up…

"What happened?" Leon asked…

"You did something stupid… again" Andr said…

Leon facepalmed at himself once he started remembering what happened. "Tell me Retasu-chan is alright"

"All of the girls are ok, but they would like an apology from you when you're ready" Andr said…

Leon stepped out of the table he had been lying on and went for his black shirt to put it back on…

While Andr went to get some well-deserved sleep, Leon walked upstairs, out of the bunker and into the house. Masaya had just come out shirtless from inside the bathroom near where Leon was passing. Leon noticed Masaya's back was full of scratches…

"Dude! What the fuck happened to you?" Leon asked, slightly shocked…

"Oh, this? …Just a normal night with my cute kitty fiancée" Masaya nonchalantly replied…

"Oh… ok" Leon said, not bothering to think much about it. Meanwhile the five Mew Mews were sitting at the table, having breakfast…

"…And I had to listen to them doing it all night!" Minto ranted…

"I already said I'm sorry! We didn't mean to bother you!" Ichigo yelled…

"We should have exchanged rooms, Minto. I'd have loved to know what kinky things they were doing there" Bu-Ling said happily, no longer the innocent little girl she was 5 years ago. This embarrassed Ichigo…

"Believe me, Bu-Ling. It's not as glamorous as it sounds" Minto said. Then Leon walked in. "Oh! Look who's been reactivated! Please don't kill us!" Minto said sarcastically…

"Is there anything the anti-Japan cyborg has to say?" Ichigo asked, faking offended to remind Leon of what he owed to them…

Leon kneeled down and bowed, begging japanese-style to Retasu, and _only_ Retasu…

"I have no excuse for my behavior last night. What I did was stupid. Please punish me as you see fit" Leon said awkwardly to Retasu, only managing to embarrass her in front of her friends…

"Didn't Dr. Seto say he couldn't reprogram him? Or is this a different robot of the same model?" Zakuro said with a little sarcasm…

"Hey! Why only Retasu? What about us?" Minto complained…

"Yeah! Those punches and arm cannon shots hurt! We're going to decide your punishment!" Ichigo said…

"So be it" Leon conceded…

"Well, in that case…" Ichigo said with a mischievous kitty face, showing her cat ears and tail. "You should know humility is a very desirable trait here in Japan…"

"What's your plan, Ichigo?" Bu-Ling asked…

"You will have to humiliate yourself a little, cyborg-san… We command you to kiss Retasu's foot!" Ichigo said…

" _Huh?_ " a comically shocked Retasu said…

"You're supposed to _punish_ me, not reward me!" Leon replied…

" _What?_ " Retasu squealed, her face blushing brightly from feeling so flattered…

"It's not for your pleasure, it's for our own! We demand to see some ship tease here!" Ichigo said…

Leon gently took Retasu's foot and, in a gesture of submission, kissed it not once, not twice, but repeatedly…

"Tee-hee-hee! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Retasu laughed happily as Leon's kisses tickled her foot…

Ichigo, Minto and Bu-Ling squealed happily with their eyes taking a pink heart shape, while Zakuro silently enjoyed the spectacle with a faint smile…

"You know a guy likes you when he considers kissing your foot a reward" Ichigo said to Minto beside her. She was unaware that Masaya was standing behind her and he heard her say that. He did not waste a second getting below the table to kiss Ichigo's foot. " _Nya-ha-ha-ha-ha!_ " Ichigo suddenly laughed happily as well when Masaya's lips tickled her bare foot…


	9. For her happiness

**Warning: This chapter contains heavy spoilers for the finale of Tokyo Mew Mew.**

With Andr sound asleep and Leon having gone off who knows where, the Mew Mews and Masaya had Andr's house all for themselves for the time being…

"Well? Now what?" Minto asked before taking a sip of her tea…

"At least now we know what the person behind these new Chimera Anima looks like. As for where to _find_ her, that's a different story" Ichigo said…

"That's… not enough to work with, is it?" Bu-Ling said…

Retasu remained silent, staring at her own beautiful bare feet and blushing…

"Is something wrong with your feet, Retasu?" Minto asked…

"I'm… not sure…" Retasu replied…

"Remember the poor girl suddenly scored not one, but _two_ guys who like her feet" Ichigo whispered to Minto…

"Is she _still_ unable to decide for one of the two boys? I think it's pretty clear now! She should definitely go for Dr. Seto, because the robot boy is too much of a jerk. Imagine what it must be like to be married to a guy like _that_!" Minto whispered back to Ichigo…

"Yeah, he is a jerk, but I don't think he's completely irredeemable. After all, he realized his mistake and apologized, didn't he?" Ichigo said…

"That doesn't mean a thing" Zakuro said as she stood behind the couch where Ichigo and Minto were sitting. "Do you know how many men use an apology to have their wives forgive them and then go and do the same bad thing again and again? It wouldn't surprise me if that cyborg attacked us again. Just think about it, Dr. Seto himself said he made that switch to turn off his powers whenever he got out of control. This is surely not the first time something like this has happened"

"Poor Retasu" Ichigo said, feeling sad for her friend. "Knowing that other girls aren't so lucky with the boyfriends they get makes me value my Masaya-kun more… By the way, where's Masaya-kun?"

Meanwhile Leon was alone in his bedroom, playing a videogame about a robot boy exploring a cave and saving a village of bunny-like people. Masaya just plain opened the door to Leon's bedroom without even knocking…

Leon let out an annoyed sigh. "I know, I know. In Japan, barging into people's rooms is culturally accepted"

"It's unhealthy to just shut yourself in, you know" Masaya replied…

"That's not the _true_ reason why you're here" Leon said…

"Well… At first I debated myself as to whether or not I should shove my kendo sword down your throat for hurting Ichigo-chan…" Masaya said with a very serious look…

"As if you could…" Leon replied, rolling his eyes…

"…Ichigo-chan was the one who convinced me to not do it" Masaya said…

"Didn't you tell her she's forgiving me too easily?" Leon said…

"I did… She told me the reason why you got so angry, and I can see where you were coming from, but that does not justify what you did" Masaya said…

"None of it matters anyway. It's not like our fight will make a difference. The world was always meant to be unfair, and we're not going to change any of that" Leon said…

Masaya stayed silent for a while. Leon then stopped playing the game and finally looked towards the person he was talking to…

"We're defending the wrong people. Those guys treated their girlfriends like shit, the resulting Chimera Anima are nothing but karma. Why not just let those assholes die and get the punishment for their actions that way? …As far as I'm concerned, I think it's that fox woman who's doing the right thing" Leon said…

Masaya's eyes saddened. "I understand what you mean. I used to be like you…"

"Pfff!" Leon said, trying to hold back his laugh. "Yeah, right! Mr. Perfect Goody-Two-Shoes wanted to have people killed! Sure!" he remarked in complete disbelief…

"I'm serious. You surely know how selfish humans can be. They just consume natural resources with abandon, cutting down entire forests with a total disregard for the fauna living in them, throwing their waste into the rivers and seas just for their selfish goals…" Masaya said with a sudden calm anger…

"I'm not a big fan of preachy environmentalism" Leon replied with slight disgust…

"Just listen to me for a minute, please! Think about all the damage humans have caused to this beautiful planet! If you loved this beautiful Earth as much as I do, wouldn't you want to drive humanity extinct?" Masaya said…

"As far as saving the world is concerned, it's probably for the best. I don't personally like nature, but I do admit the world would be a better place for animals and plants if all humans died" Leon said…

"See? You are no different from how I used to be" Masaya said…

"And what made you change your mind and spare humanity?" Leon asked…

"Ichigo-chan" Masaya simply replied…

"Your catgirl fiancée?" Leon said…

"That's right. She would always be really nice to me for no reason. She didn't expect anything in exchange. I suppose that's how I started taking an interest on her. Then, as we started dating, I eventually found out she's like that to pretty much everybody… Of course, Ichigo-chan is nobody's punching bag, but if other humans could be generous and selfless like her, maybe humanity could be redeemed. I eventually abandoned my plans for the extinction of humanity in order to fully dedicate myself to make the world a better place for humans and non-humans alike… that's what would make Ichigo-chan happy"

Leon stayed silent for several seconds…

"So… You're telling me that _you_ were the alien who threatened the world five years ago" Leon said in disbelief…

"In a way, yes. It's complicated" Masaya admitted. "But do you see where I'm trying to get at?"

"Yes, but bad men don't change their ways just because a woman loves them. Just look at the Chimera Anima we fought and the boyfriends they killed" Leon argued…

"What about Midorikawa-san? What do you think of her?" Masaya asked…

"Retasu-chan? …Personally, I think she's really fucking hot…" Leon replied…

"That's all?" Masaya asked…

"No… I also think she's way too innocent and idealistic for her own good. I'm worried that one day she will spare the wrong guy and get backstabbed as a result" Leon said…

"But you _are_ worried about her!" Masaya said…

"Of course I am! People as good as her are rare! What are the odds of finding a woman _that_ nice in this rotten world?" Leon exclaimed. "…And if she died, it'd be nigh-impossible to find another one like her" he added as he looked down sadly…

"If she's that special to you, then I have a proposal to make: If you're not going to change for your own good, then change for hers!" Masaya said…

Leon's eyes opened widely in surprise. "But… That's not going to change the world! It's still going to be the same treacherous place it always was!"

"You sure? Because the world _did_ change for me when Ichigo pulled me out of the darkness" Masaya said…

"But the bastards that keep breaking their girls' hearts and causing them to resort to that vixen to turn them to monsters…" Leon said…

"You won't be like them. You will find a way to deal with them without resorting to killing, as long as you let your loved one guide your steps" Masaya said. "…That's all. Ichigo-chan must be missing me right now. So, if you'll excuse me…"

Elsewhere in the house, Ichigo had decided she wanted to paint Retasu's toenails green. "Stay still, Retasu!" Ichigo said…

"But you're touching my foot and that tickles, Ichigo-san!" Retasu said, blushing cutely…

Ichigo then playfully tickled Retasu's adorable foot with her fingertips for about half a second, which caused Retasu to laugh loudly. "Both of your boyfriend candidates have a thing for your feet, right? Then you'd better start taking really good care of them and make sure they look as beautiful as possible!" Ichigo said to her friend…

"Um… about that… I think Dr. Seto might be in love with somebody else" Retasu said…

"Well, shoot! That only leaves you with one option: You will have to change that cyborg jerk into a nice guy by using the Power of Love!" Ichigo said…

Retasu blushed and smiled, but her eyes turned sad. "Believe me. I'd just _love_ to do that… After all, he _did_ save me that time when I was about to be killed, and I know that deep inside he _does_ care about others' problems… but killing the wrongdoer without giving him a chance to redeem himself? That's not the way to do it!"

"Yeah, I know. Imagine for example a boy walking into your room while you're changing like in a harem anime. Your first instinct will be to hurt him _real_ bad!" Ichigo said."Now, suppose you decided to kill him rather than just cause him some pain. He'll be dead and you will never know if maybe he really didn't intend to see you changing. He might have not been a pervert after all but you will never know"

"Exactly! I believe nobody is entirely evil! Even the aliens we fought five years ago proved to have a good side!" Retasu said…

"I know right! Remember Kish? He used to be our mortal enemy, but in the end he almost got killed to save my life! If Kish and his two brothers were able to change for the better thanks to us, I'm pretty sure you can change Leon as well!" Ichigo said…

Retasu nodded, now happier thanks to her talk to Ichigo. Few minutes later, Ichigo finished painting all 10 of Retasu's toenails. Meanwhile Masaya walked in. "How are the two princesses doing?" he asked flatteringly…

"I'm just finished giving Retasu here a little something extra to help her seduce the foot-loving boys" Ichigo said, winking an eye…

"That reminds me…" Masaya said, looking at Retasu. "I think your Black Knight up there is ready to have a talk with you"

Retasu blushed and smiled, then quickly got up and bowed to both of them. "Thank you, guys!" she said as she quickly went upstairs…

"We make such a good team, my Masaya-kun!" Ichigo said to her beloved. Both lovers high-fived…

Leon had been in his bedroom all this time, not playing videogames, but pondering about what Masaya had told him. He had finally decided to stand up and get things straight. As soon as he ran out of his room to search for Retasu, he almost bumped into her…

"I'm sorry" Retasu said…

"Don't be sorry! It's my fault" Leon said, still sounding as harsh as ever, blushing and looking away…

Both of them stayed in awkward silence for several seconds, and then they both summoned courage and tried to speak at the same time. Realizing they were interfering with each other, they stayed silent again…

"What were you going to say?" Leon asked…

"No. You first, Leon-san" Retasu conceded politely…

Leon took a deep breath. "Look… I know we started on the wrong foot… no pun intended, I guess…"

Retasu giggled cutely and blushed…

"I don't expect to be forgiven for the shit I did to you and your friends last night. I know I don't deserve…" Leon said…

"Leon-san, please don't say that!" Retasu interrupted him. "Everyone deserves a chance for redemption. Now I see why you're like this. How can you forgive others when you don't even know how to forgive yourself?"

"But I hurt your friends…" Leon said, clenching his teeth, angry at himself…

"You can't forever punish yourself for your mistakes" Retasu replied…

"You have no idea, Retasu-chan… I've done so many things in my life that I'm not proud of…" Leon said…

"We all did, Leon-san!" Retasu said. "We grow up and become better people by learning from our mistakes! …And I suppose that's what separates a cyborg from a robot, right? I mean, you still have a human half that can learn and improve"

Leon made another moment of silence as his brain processed what Retasu had just said to him. He finally made a faint smile and looked down, his face blushed and his eyes showed deep emotion. "Retasu-chan… thank you" Leon muttered. Retasu smiled at him…


	10. The true enemy is revealed

While Retasu and Leon were sorting things out, Zakuro had decided to take a walk around Kanagawa and secretly scout out for any possible clues that would lead them to the source of the new breed of Chimera Anima…

Suddenly, Zakuro noticed two women in front of her on the same sidewalk she was walking on, one leaning against the wall, the other standing near her partner and glaring at Zakuro with her hand on her wooden katana. Zakuro immediately realized the one leaning against the wall had the short hair and fox-like facial features the witness had told her and the others about…

"Well, if it isn't one of the magical girls! One of the Tokyo Mew Mew, I presume!" Mitsune said…

Zakuro took out her Mew Pendant out of her purse and kissed it. " _Mew Mew Zakuro! Metamorphose!_ " she shouted, and her transformation sequence happened. It wasn't until said transformation sequence ended that Motoko drew her sword and stepped in to fight her…

"Why didn't you just attack her during her overly long transformation?" Mitsune asked her accomplice…

"That would be cowardly" Motoko replied…

"Correction: That would be _smart_ " Mitsune said…

Motoko charged at Zakuro with a loud scream. Zakuro attacked Motoko with her flaming whip as well. Both weapons clashed with more or less equal force, causing a thunderous sound…

"What? She blocked my attack with a sword made of _wood_?" the surprised Zakuro thought…

After deflecting Zakuro's attack, Motoko resumed her charge. Zakuro was barely able to jump out of the way of Motoko's slash, but she watched in horror as the nearby metallic streetlight pole got sliced as if it were made of butter, falling loudly onto somebody's parked car…

" _Ribbon: Zakuro Spear!_ " Zakuro shouted, launching a whiplash in a flaming spiral that ignited everything on its way towards its target. Motoko screamed as she slashed powerfully with her wooden sword again, completely stopping Zakuro's attack without receiving any damage. However, all the fire and flashiness of the attack was used as a smokescreen by Zakuro to flee the battle…

"I _hate_ cowardly opponents!" Motoko complained angrily, putting her sword back to her waist…

"Not cowardly, smart. She immediately understood her chances of winning the battle alone were not optimal. She probably went to bring her friends to back her up" Mitsune explained…

"Anyone who doesn't fight bravely until the end is a coward" Motoko said…

"Anyway, we've now assessed the strength of the Tokyo Mew Mew. Looks like they're not threatening individually" Mitsune said…

"What about the cyborg?" Motoko asked…

"I don't think he's any big deal. Let's go back to the house for now" Mitsune said…

Andr found himself in a dark and empty entrance hallway…

"This is…" he thought as he immediately recognized the entrance hallway of Tokyo University…

Andr was standing inside. The sky was dark and with no moon or stars. He stared at the entrance and spotted another person his age outside, who also happened to wear nerd glasses, although more a square shape than Andr's. His hair also looked a bit messier compared to Andr's…

The other person outside, almost entirely obscured by the darkness of the night except for his glasses shining white due to reflected light, seemed to desperately attempt to get inside, stopped by what appeared to be an invisible door Andr could somehow see through. This person banged on the invisible door like his life depended on it, the sound being loud and echoing in the empty and silent hallway…

Andr then saw a number of female-shaped shadows creep behind the person outside. They all latched onto that person all over his body and violently dragged him away to the Gates of Hell…

" _Noooooo!_ " Andr screamed, trying to reach for the poor victim outside but unable to get any closer no matter how much he ran after him…

And after the victim was fully dragged into Hell, Andr noticed a young girl with short blue hair on the other side. He tried to reach for her as well, but the Gates of Hell suddenly slammed shut with a loud, echoing thud…

Andr woke up and immediately sat up on the bed inside his bunker, covered in sweat and breathing heavily…

"That dream again…" he thought…

"Oh, you're finally awake!" Bu-Ling's voice sounded, but Andr didn't see her anywhere…

Then suddenly the monkey-like young Chinese beauty entered the room riding on a unicycle and juggling the food and stuff that she landed perfectly on the plate she later gave to Andr. The young scientist's face before this impossible feat was pure "WTF?"

"The others are waiting for you upstairs, Dr. Seto" Bu-Ling said happily before starting to roll her way off…

"Wait! _How_ did you do all that stuff? Even for a professional circus artist it'd have been impossible to not at least spill the coffee!" Andr said…

Bu-Ling stopped for a minute and looked back at Andr with a smile. "Oh, that? It took me my entire life to master it. You didn't think I was born with that skill or that I suddenly woke up one day knowing how to do it, did you?"

"Uh… No, of course not" Andr said…

"Okay. See you upstairs!" Bu-Ling said happily as she rolled away on her unicycle…

"Wait… That explained nothing!" Andr thought…

The sun was setting. Andr dressed up and went upstairs. In the living room he found Leon, the Mew Mews, Masaya, Ryou and Keiichiro…

"Good morning, Dr. Seto" Ryou greeted…

"Sorry, guys. I think I don't have enough spare bedrooms for all of you" Andr said…

"I know. Keiichiro and I are opening a temporary café here in Kanagawa while we carry out our mission" Ryou said…

"Just when I thought I'd have a little break from serving people at the café" Ichigo complained…

"You don't have to work if you don't want the pay" Ryou replied to Ichigo, frustrating her yet again…

"I'm sure you didn't come here just to tease your employee" Andr said…

"Right. It's time for the feature presentation" Ryou said as he opened his laptop and showed a map of Kanagawa prefecture…

"I have a bigger screen in my bunker if you want to use it" Andr said, since not everyone could clearly see the laptop's small screen. They took his advice and connected Ryou's laptop to Andr's lab computer via USB cable, showing the map on the larger screen for everyone in there to see…

"The thing that has been bothering me from the start is the fact that the Parasite Aliens have been genetically altered by our new enemy. In order for that to be possible, said enemy needs to have a laboratory somewhere in this city" Ryou said…

"We also caught on an interesting local urban myth. Some 'Legendary Inn', as the townspeople calls it" Keiichiro said. The last statement horrified Andr for some reason…

"Legendary Inn? That's what that old lady told me about during my first visit here at Kanagawa! You mean the one that has the power to get anyone into Tokyo University?" surprised Retasu said…

"That's one of the many mystical properties that people have been attributing to it in the past seven years. Sounds like nonsense to me. Just because you stay at an Inn it doesn't qualify you for Tokyo University. Study does" Ryou said…

"Recently, the local girls have also been attributing it with powers such as making a romantic relationship successful if you confess your love behind the inn, or the power to turn karma against cheating boyfriends. In any case, only women ever go into that Inn" Keiichiro said. Andr clenched his first, which started to tremble. Some of the Mew Mews noticed this…

"That last one sounded interesting considering the recent Chimera Anima and their justifications for their murders. So, while you were fending off the Chimera Anima, we did a little research on our own and found this place" Ryou said, and marked a spot on the map. The screen changed to show a satellite image of a hill near a forest. The hill had a long stone stairway leading all the way to the top, where an inn was located. There was also a teahouse halfway up the stone stairs…

"No! That can't be the place!" Andr reacted with uncharacteristic anger. "Check again! This has to be a mistake"

Ryou, Keiichiro and the Mew Mews were astonished at this sudden explosion from the normally calm and easy-going Andr. Leon, however, lowered his head and closed his eyes calmly and somewhat sadly, knowing exactly what was going on with him…

"This is no mistake, Dr. Seto. We scanned that hill and detected a high concentration of Parasite Aliens in it" Ryou said…

" _That's a lie!_ " Dr. Seto screamed, scaring everyone except for Leon. "That's the place where _she_ 's living!"

Retasu then gasped in shock "Dr. Seto, do you mean…?"

Ichigo soon started connecting the dots as well thanks to what Retasu had told her earlier, and the look in her eyes started to sadden…

"Dr. Seto! Calm down!" a surprised Ryou said…

"The Parasite Aliens _can't_ be coming from there!" Andr yelled, getting the metaphorical knot in the throat as he started crying. "She _can't_ be part of all this! _That cannot be!_ "

Andr then broke down, fell to his knees and cried, raining tears on the cold floor of the bunker. Retasu immediately felt the need to comfort him…

"The person Andr loves the most in the entire world lives there" Leon said, shocking everyone with the revelation, but especially Retasu…

"You mean Dr. Seto's girlfriend might…?" a horrified Ichigo said…

" _No!_ " Andr interrupted her…

"I agree with Dr. Seto! I'm sure that a woman that deserves his love would never do something so horrible! Maybe she's being held prisoner against her will or something!" Retasu said…

"There is only one way to find out" Ryou said. "We're going to infiltrate and investigate both the inn and the teahouse at the halfway point of the stone stairs, since that's the place where the desperate girlfriends have been getting their 'lucky charms' from the woman with the fox-like face"

"Be very careful. This afternoon Zakuro-san encountered a powerful swordswoman working for the enemy" Keiichiro warned the other Mew Mews…

"That is correct. You should avoid confronting that woman on your own. If you see a woman with black hair and Kendo clothes wielding a wooden sword, get help from teammates or run away" Zakuro said…

"But Zakuro-oneesama! You're the strongest of us! Even _you_ couldn't beat her?" Minto said…

"Our forces were equal. It was 50-50 odds of me winning or getting killed. Too risky to continue fighting" Zakuro said…

"A kendo fighter? Maybe I should go too!" Masaya said…

"Are you nuts? You lost your powers five years ago!" Ryou reminded Masaya…

"But who's going to protect Ichigo? Besides, Kendo is second nature to me! I'm the one best suited to hold that woman off while the others complete the mission!" Masaya said…

"Ryou is right" Ichigo admitted, surprising her lover. "If you died, I wouldn't have the strength to go on with my life. It's better for you to stay back, Masaya-kun"

"What about _you_? I can't lose you!" Masaya said, hugging Ichigo…

Andr stood up. "I think I can work out something. I just want to ask for a favor…" he said seriously…

"Yes, Dr. Seto! Anything!" Retasu said to him…

"If you see a timid and sweet girl with short dark blue hair… please rescue her from that hell!" Andr pleaded with tears in his eyes…


	11. Inn of monsters

That night, Leon and the five Mew Mews spread in teams of two and approached the so-called Legendary Inn from different routes…

"So this is Hinata House…" Leon said as he stared at the Legendary Inn's front…

"Hinata House?" Retasu, his partner, asked him…

"That's the Legendary Inn's real name. This place has been giving Andr _nightmares_ ever since his only visit there. It affected him so badly he told every guy he met to never go there" Leon said. "That must be why only women ever come here…"

"But it looks like an ordinary traditional Japanese inn" Retasu said…

"And as far as I know, it is. But if Andr's description of its tenants is to be believed, that inn may as well be inhabited by _hellspawn_ " Leon said…

Retasu gulped. "Are they _that_ bad?"

"Andr once said a former friend of his has been held prisoner inside under extreme torture conditions for 7 years and he's still being tortured to this day" Leon said…

"Sounds like a horror story to me" Retasu said, shivering…

Meanwhile Minto and Zakuro were approaching Hinata House from the back. Minto flew high in the dark sky, while Zakuro moved silently among the trees and bushes of the forest like a night predator. As for Ichigo and Bu-Ling, they had arrived at the closed teahouse…

"Is everyone in position?" Andr asked via the comm…

"Team 1 is in position" Leon replied…

"Team 2 is in…" Zakuro was about to say, but the sound of heavy artillery interrupted her…

" _Waaaaah!_ " Minto cried as she was able to barely dodge anti-air cannon ammo aimed at her. She had to make an emergency landing inside the forest to avoid getting blown to bits…

"Team 2! What happened?" Andr asked over the comm…

"They've got freaking _anti-air cannons_ in their hot spring! These people are completely _insane_!" Minto replied…

Retasu gasped and covered her mouth in horror…

"Told ya" Leon said to Retasu…

"They must have installed those to prevent perverts from peeking in from above" Andr explained…

"That's some over-the-top protection of female privacy there! No wonder Leon grew to be so violent in a neighborhood with people like that!" Ichigo said…

"Welcome to my world" Leon replied sarcastically…

"By the way, Team 3 is in position" Ichigo said…

Minto reunited with Zakuro. "Team 2 is in position" Zakuro said…

"It worries me that splitting the Mew Mews might diminish their effectiveness. They are team players" Ryou pointed out…

"We're trying to cause enemy forces to spread far from each other so they can't reinforce in time" Andr replied…

"How big do you calculate the enemy force defending an inn can possibly be?" Keiichiro asked…

"No more than 10 people, I hope" Andr said. "Alright. Proceed with caution. I bet those anti-air cannons aren't their only defense mechanism"

"Roger" Leon said as he walked towards the inn. He soon heard a blip under his foot where he stepped. "What the fuck?"

Retasu was quick to pull Leon away a split second before the landmine exploded…

"They've got a fucking _minefield_ in their front garden!" Leon screamed over the comm. to mission control…

"That's very unwelcoming from a so-called Legendary Inn…" Ryou said…

"Hmmm… It must be because rounding the inn must be the path perverts would take to spy on the girls in their dorms. The only safe route would be to enter from where girls wanting to stay would: the cobblestone path to the front door" Andr said…

"How do you know all that stuff?" Ryou asked in disbelief…

"Get into the enemy's head. Calculate their moves based on their own way of thinking" Andr said…

Minto and Zakuro found themselves in front of a wire fence. "Let me guess: Electrified fence to prevent perverts from climbing up the hot spring wall" Minto said with sarcasm…

Andr analyzed it from the base "Indeed electrified" he replied…

"If I ever want to go skinny-dipping in a hot spring without being peeped on, I'll do it in this inn" Zakuro joked, even though her voice and expression were as cold and emotionless as usual…

"Well, luckily Bu-Ling and I got the teahouse. There's no way anyone will do anything perverted in here, so there mustn't be any anti-pervert traps" Ichigo said…

"Don't get cocky. Remember that's the place where they gave out the Parasite Aliens to those girls" Ryou told her over the comm…

The front door of the teahouse was closed, but there was an open window in plain sight. "We can enter through this window" Ichigo said…

"That's weird. Kitsune wouldn't leave such an obvious opening unless she _wanted_ you to go in from there" Andr said…

"Kitsune?" Ryou asked…

"That's her nickname because of her cunning and her facial features. The one handing the Parasite Aliens to the girls _has_ to be her" Andr said…

Leon and Retasu walked carefully, staying on the path as if they were going to actually stay at the inn…

"We're in" Ichigo told to mission control. The small teahouse had only a few tables. "Work would be _so_ much easier if Mew Mew Café were this small"

"No. It would be boring" Bu-Ling objected. "Mew Mew Café has enough space for my acrobatics show"

"The Parasite Aliens would be too dangerous to carry out in the open, so their supply should be coming from some kind of underground tunnel. Look for a passage taking you to an underground storage or something and destroy all the Parasites you find" Ryou said…

Both girls checked the entire place. Bu-Ling checked behind the counter and found a small metallic robot turtle, but it was turned off. "What a curious turtle-shaped robot" she said casually…

"Quick! Smash it now!" Andr suddenly shouted…

"Hey, I found it!" Ichigo said as she opened a secret path taking to an underground tunnel. When she did, the little robot turtle's eyes lit a menacing red…

"Destroy…" the robot turtle said, and soon many others emerged from behind every piece of furniture and from inside every drawer, until they formed a small army. They then each opened various compartments in their little bodies to deploy laser guns, missile launchers and mini gatling guns…

All that mission control and the rest of the team could hear was the screams of pain of Ichigo and Bu-Ling as well as the sounds of weapons and explosions you would normally hear in a warzone, before communication cut off…

"Ichigo! Oi, _Ichigo!_ " Ryou screamed…

Horrified, Masaya immediately took a strange sword that was on the bunker's table and ran out of the house…

"Wait! I haven't finished it yet!" Andr shouted, but Masaya was already gone…

"Dr. Seto, what happened?" Ryou asked, worried…

"Mecha-Tama…" Andr replied as he laid both hands heavily on the control panel, with fear in his eyes. "It's a flying combat robot drone designed after a certain turtle, armed with lasers, missile launchers and mini gatling guns. Dr. Su must be working with them too!"

"Dr. Su?" Ryou asked…

"Of course! Only _she_ could have the scientific expertise to genetically alter the Parasite Alien. She _had_ to be with them on this! The entire house must be involved, which means…" Andr said, his hands trembling, his eyes getting tearful. He turned off his comm. so Leon and the remaining three Mew Mews wouldn't hear him sob. "I'm sorry, Shirogane-san… your magical girls are dead" he then stated tearfully, completely horrifying Ryou and Keiichiro…

Leon and Retasu had finally arrived at the front door, which of course was locked…

"What are we going to do now, Leon-san?" Retasu asked…

Leon simply kicked the front door of Hinata House down. Right behind the door was another Mecha-Tama waiting in ambush, and it immediately launched a missile at them. Leon and Retasu barely dodged it, complete with Retasu letting out a scream. As soon as he had the chance, Leon shot at the Mecha Tama with his arm cannon, successfully stunning it. " _Now, Retasu-chan!_ "

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu shouted as she blasted the already-sparking Mecha-Tama with her water attack, causing it to short-circuit and break…

"They knew we were coming…" Leon said…

"Negative, Leon. They have their defenses this high every night in case any perverts want to peep on them while in their rooms" Andr explained…

"Aw, come on! Who would want to peep on this trash dump anyway? Why don't perverts in this city just use the Internet like normal people?" Leon complained…

"That's the joke… Perverts have stopped going there long ago. Not since the most terrifying hellish beast from a man's worst nightmares came to live in it 7 years ago" Andr said…

"I have a feeling you're talking about _that_ woman…" Leon said seriously…

"She has the _looks_ of a woman… but she's a creature so vile and bloodthirsty that the word 'monster' doesn't even _start_ to describe her!" Andr said, sounding more and more terrified as he spoke…

Somewhere deep in a secret underground tunnel under Hinata House, a path led to a cage of the type you would use to keep an animal. The door of the cage was open, and the 24-years-old woman with the ahoge that we had seen before was on top of someone, roaring fiercely and brutally punching the poor victim on the face with such strength that it sounded like a sledgehammer. The woman's fists were soaked in her victim's blood, and the victim's body twitched as if he still were alive even after such brutal punishment…

"She is only known as…" Andr said nervously, meanwhile the woman with the ahoge slowly raised her furious, murderous glare, camera focusing on her face. "… _Naru Narusegawa!_ " Andr revealed. "She must have ordered to have all those crazy anti-pervert defense measures installed into the inn and its surroundings"

Retasu gulped again. "M-Maybe when she was younger someone… um… 'took advantage' of her, and she's traumatized because of it" she said…

"Yeah, but the bitch is extending her revenge to the entire city! There's no excuse for that!" Leon said…

"Actually, it may not be Naru that's behind the Alien Parasite operation. You see, Naru has been 'happily' married for 4 years now. Her husband would _never_ cheat on her, no matter what" Andr said…

"What? …If Narusegawa-san isn't the mastermind behind the murders, then who is?" Retasu asked…

Andr started to sob through the comm. "Someone who also loved Naru's husband. Someone whose tender and loving heart was shattered into pieces when the man she loved married another woman. Someone who _might_ secretly harbor a grudge and want to get revenge on _every_ boyfriend… Someone that I…"

Retasu gasped in horror. "Dr. Seto, _no_! I'm sure she would _never_ do that to you! …Andr-san?"

"The communication was cut" Leon said…

Andr was crying, the comm. turned off so the team wouldn't hear him…

"Dr. Seto…" Ryou said…

"It's okay… I suppose my greatest fear has been confirmed" Andr said, trying to fake a smile even though he couldn't stop crying…

"Dr. Seto, do you _know_ who the mastermind behind the recent atrocities is? Please tell us!" Ryou asked…

"It's… Shinobu Maehara" Andr revealed, shocking Ryou and Keiichiro…

Meanwhile Leon and Retasu explored the eerily empty inn as they discussed the same matter…

"If Andr told you anything about Shinobu Maehara, it surely is how full of kindness and generosity she is. Someone like her could never mastermind a series of murders" Leon said to Retasu…

"I agree with you, Leon-san. There must be a mistake. Someone Dr. Seto loves so much couldn't possibly…" Retasu said, but she was interrupted by a thick root that crashed through the window, snatched her and pulled her away screaming…

" _Retasu-chan!_ " Leon screamed, but before he could go after her, a girl with short light blue hair suddenly burst through a nearby door and blocked his way…

"You're not getting out of here alive, pervert!" the girl with light blue hair and a psychotic look said, soon transforming into a floating mermaid Chimera Anima with a big broadsword and a shield, though still conserving the face and naked torso of her human form, but with blue scaly skin and fins where her ears were. Retasu, meanwhile, had been pulled outside by a flat-chested tomboy with pink hair, green eyes, red shirt and black boots, who had the root she pulled Retasu with coming from her body…

"Do you _really_ depend on a man? That's so pathetic. It makes me wanna _crush you! Cha!_ " the tomboy with pink hair said, and transformed into a Chimera Anima shaped like a cherry tree, but with the tomboy's naked upper half as part of the trunk…

Minto and Zakuro fared no better. They were able to get past the electric fence, but the back of Hinata House was where most defenses were concentrated. Now an entire army of Mecha-Tamas was unleashing their arsenal at them, forcing them to desperately run for their lives…

"Team 2! Do you read me?" Ryou shouted desperately, but then he heard the sound of an explosion…

"We've lost contact with Minto and Zakuro!" an alarmed Keiichiro said, unable to keep his calm expression any longer…

" _Nooooooo!_ " Ryou screamed in anger and frustration as he slammed his fists into the control panel…

Leon was barely able to dodge his opponent's sword swipes and jump back, but ended up cornered against a wall. "Andr! They've got Chimera Anima protecting the inside of the building! …Andr? Answer me!" Leon yelled, but the communication was still cut as Andr was too distraught and depressed to do his job…

"Team 1! Abort the mission! I repeat, _abort the mission_!" Ryou yelled over the comm…

"It's a little too late for that!" Leon replied before being slashed by the sword of the mermaid Chimera Anima, while Retasu got punched against the wall by one of the thick roots of the cherry tree Chimera Anima…


	12. Shattered hearts

Leon was slashed by the sword of the mermaid-like Chimera Anima. Luckily for him, her sword was only about as sharp as the previous mantis-like Chimera Anima's blades, so it only cut through his clothes and artificial skin, barely damaging the surface of his metal structure…

" _What?_ " the floating mermaid Chimera Anima said in surprise. "That's not possible! Perverts usually die in one stroke from my mighty sword of justice!"

" _I did not come here to peep on you!_ " Leon screamed loud and clearly as he punched the mermaid Chimera Anima on the face hard, sending her against the wall…

"You…" the mermaid Chimera Anima said, shocked. "…You just _hit a girl! What's wrong with you?_ " she yelled…

Meanwhile, outside, the cherry tree Chimera Anima was beating up Retasu…

" _Cha! I'll crush you!_ " the cherry tree Chimera Anima said as she was about to drop one of her thick roots on Retasu and kill her…

However, Retasu stepped aside at the last second and ran towards her opponent at an incredible speed, then jumped and kicked the cherry tree Chimera Anima three times on the face before jumping back…

"Well… Now _that_ 's more like it" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said with a wicked smile, and then she wiped the blood off her mouth with her arm. "A girl must be able to throw her femininity away and fight like a man!"

"Why are you doing this?" Retasu asked the Chimera Anima…

"Shut up and fight me!" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said as she started launching a barrage of sharp pink petals, hurting Retasu…

Meanwhile inside, the mermaid Chimera Anima summoned big wooden wheels like those of a chariot and had them roll towards Leon, who could barely dodge them as they broke the wall into another room, essentially making the battlefield larger…

" _Wooden wheels?_ What the fuck does that have to do with a mermaid theme? Shouldn't you be raising pillars of water or something?" Leon yelled at her…

"It's the Wheels of Fate!" the mermaid Chimera Anima replied…

"That doesn't tell me anything!" Leon said as he fired his arm cannon at her. The mermaid Chimera Anima just blocked the shots with her shield, unaffected…

"You know, because fate keeps moving ahead, with or without you!" the mermaid Chimera Anima said as she attacked with her sword…

Leon jumped back into the other room to dodge the sword swipe. "You just made that up, didn't you?"

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu shouted as she launched a high-pressure water blast from her castanets, able to hurt the Chimera Anima with it despite being a tree-like monster. Retasu's body had some small bleeding cuts from her enemy's previous sharp petal attack…

" _Is that all you've got?_ " the cherry tree Chimera Anima yelled loudly and boastfully…

"I don't want to fight you" Retasu replied…

"Why? You think I'm weak? I _hate_ being looked down upon! Especially by feminine girls like you!" the cherry tree Chimera Anima shouted angrily as she tried to crush Retasu with several of her roots at once, but Retasu barely managed to back-flip out of the way…

" _No!_ You've got it all wrong!" Retasu said. "You decided to become a monster because your boyfriend wronged you, right?"

" _That's none of your business!_ " the cherry tree Chimera Anima screamed, noticeably upset. She then punched Retasu in the stomach with one of her roots, causing her to vomit some blood…

Inside the house, Leon got smacked in the face by one of the wooden wheels as he was trying to dodge them all, knocking him down onto the floor. The mermaid Chimera Anima tried to slice him in two before he could get up, but he rolled out of the way and jumped back to his feet, wiping the blood off his mouth afterwards…

"You can't escape justice, you damn pervert!" the mermaid Chimera Anima said…

"I couldn't help noticing you spout the word 'justice' a lot" Leon said, getting back into fighting stance…

"Of course! I'm a heroine of justice! It's what I fight for!" the mermaid Chimera Anima said…

The look in Leon's eyes suddenly saddened. "You idiot… There is no such thing as justice"

" _Of course there is!_ " the mermaid Chimera Anima replied as she attacked with her sword again…

Leon barely stepped aside just in time to dodge and punched the mermaid Chimera Anima three times before she quickly floated back…

"Yeah, right! That's why you're helping an evil faction isn't it? You fucking hypocrite!" Leon said…

" _What?_ I'm fighting on the side of women! _Men_ are the evil force! That means _you_!" the mermaid Chimera Anima replied angrily as she summoned more wooden wheels and tried to crash them into Leon once again…

Leon rolled to the side to avoid the attack and shot at the Chimera Anima with his arm cannon, but she blocked the shots with her shield again. This time, however, Leon suddenly charged and pushed hard against the shield while his opponent's view was partially obscured by it, sending her against the wall…

"I'm starting to think there's some sort of extreme feminism movement going on here!" Leon said…

"Well, you can't abuse the oppressed and not expect a heroine to rise, can you?" the mermaid Chimera Anima replied as she charged back into the fight and attempted to cut Leon once again…

Retasu rolled to the side, once again avoiding getting crushed under the cherry tree Chimera Anima's roots. The Chimera Anima shot another barrage of sharp petals at her, but Retasu stopped it with yet another high-pressure water blast. Both attacks cancelled each other on collision…

"You're not fighting me full-force… And that _pisses me off_!" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said…

"Why does that bother you so much?" Retasu asked…

"Because you dare _pity_ me!" the Chimera Anima yelled…

"I can't help it! How could I beat you up knowing someone did something horrible to you? I think you've been punished enough!" Retasu said sadly…

"…You're right! I've been punished enough already! …I used to be in love with one of those bad boys, you know? The cold and aloof type who only cares about his own personal goal. Meanwhile another boy, the class clown, to be exact, was constantly harassing me… I can't really say the boy I loved dumped me, because he never considered me his girlfriend in the first place… but he _did_ call me an annoying clingy fangirl and told me he hated me!" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said as her suddenly sad eyes started getting teary…

"What a cruel thing to say to the girl who is in love with you!" a horrified Retasu replied…

"Wait! There's more! …When I was at my lowest point, contemplating suicide, that class clown who had been harassing me up to that point started trying to cheer me up. Maybe he always did, I don't know. The point is he promised he'd bring my beloved back to me… I fell in love with this class clown for the compassion he showed me. Truth be told, I didn't care about the previous guy anymore…" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said…

"Then why are you a Chimera Anima?" Retasu asked…

The cherry tree Chimera Anima's teary eyes became filled with rage once again. "Because I was _used!_ The class clown was never after me in the first place! He was _after the other cold and aloof boy I was in love with!_ The only reason he was trying to seduce me was because… get this: _he thought it would make the other boy jealous!_ Once I confessed my love to him, _he just threw me away!_ I was no longer useful to him!"

Retasu started crying at the tragic monster's story…

"What are you doing, _idiot_? _Stop crying for me!_ " the cherry tree Chimera Anima yelled furiously…

"How can I not cry at such a heart-wrenching story?" Retasu said…

"Simple: by throwing away your feelings like I did! Be cold and ruthless like a man! …Speaking of men, you came here accompanying that boyfriend of yours…" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said…

" _B-Boyfriend?_ " Retasu said, blushing intensely. "I'm not sure I can call Leon-san my boyfriend, but…"

"Don't count on him to give you your happy ending. He's a man, and as such he has the same weaknesses as all others" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said…

"What do you mean?" a worried Retasu asked…

"Sooner or later he will cheat on you with another girl" the cherry tree Chimera Anima replied seriously…

" _Leon-san?_ But… No way! He's not the sort of person who would do that!" Retasu said, already scared…

Meanwhile, Leon managed to knock the shield off the mermaid Chimera Anima's hand, and then proceeded to repeatedly blast her with his arm cannon, stunning her from the sheer pain and causing her to drop her sword. Leon then grabbed her by the neck and cornered her against the wall…

"Game over" Leon told her…

"I see… So this is how it ends… Fine! Kill me! The boy I loved got engaged to my former best friend anyway! He didn't care at all! I did everything in my power to help him heal his broken hand, so he could play music again! He just _didn't care!_ " the mermaid Chimera Anima cried…

Leon clenched his free fist as if preparing to crush the mermaid Chimera Anima's head against the wall, but he thought of Retasu at the last second. "…No"

Leon let go of the mermaid Chimera Anima's neck. She fell to the floor as she tried to catch her breath…

"Why did you spare me?" the mermaid Chimera Anima asked…

"The girl I came here with. She wouldn't approve of me killing the victim of a bastard boyfriend's abuse… And frankly, I'm more on your side than that of the boy you used to love" Leon said seriously, deeply surprising the mermaid Chimera Anima. "What pisses me off about you Japanese girls is that you're unable to move on with your life and instead continue to love the very first guy you fall for, no matter how many times he shits all over your life! You're pretty enough to just get yourself another guy anyway! Why waste your life on the first one?"

The mermaid Chimera Anima, unable to fight any longer, reverted back to her human form, though still with the Parasite Alien inside her, and as such still able to transform back…

Things didn't look so good on Retasu's side, as she was getting pummeled by the cherry tree Chimera Anima…

"What happened? The mere thought of your _darling boyfriend_ cheating on you has drained all of your fighting spirit?" the cherry tree Chimera Anima said…

" _Ribbon: Zakuro Spear!_ " Zakuro's voice shouted from off-screen, enveloping the cherry tree Chimera Anima in a spiral of purple fire. The monster let out a horrible scream of pain and reverted to her human form after the attack ended, but refused to let go of her Parasite Alien just yet…

"Zakuro-san! Minto-san! You're alive!" Retasu said as her two friends suddenly appeared to rescue her, though both of them had cuts in their bodies and some improvised first-aid on their wounds to stop them from bleeding.

"Yeah, we survived somehow" Minto said. The back of Hinata House was littered with the scrap metal of the destroyed Mecha-Tamas…

"Grrrr… _You!_ Girly bitch!" the pink-haired tomboy who could change into the cherry tree Chimera Anima said while pointing at Retasu. "My name is Sakura! Remember it, because I'm going to soon finish what I started!" she threatened before running away from the inn…

Ichigo and Bu-Ling, meanwhile, were on the run from more Mecha-Tamas themselves. Both girls wounded just as much as Zakuro and Minto…

" _Ribbon: Pudding Inferno!_ " Bu-Ling shouted as she threw her tambourine rolling towards the Mecha Tamas. On contact, the tambourine trapped a number of the little robotic turtles into inescapable jelly-like yellow puddings. However, many more of them still fired their weapons at the two poor girls…

Just when it seemed Ichigo and Bu-Ling would die, Masaya suddenly showed up with the strange sword he took from Andr's bunker, and with a loud scream he swung it with his full strength. The weapon emitted a strong sonic wave as a result. Luckily enough, the sound interfered with the Mecha-Tamas' systems, causing them to malfunction and explode…

"Wow… Pretty powerful for an unfinished weapon" Masaya commented, looking at the sword…


	13. The laboratory

"Masaya-kun!" Ichigo screamed happily as she hugged her lover…

"Where did you get that sword?" Bu-Ling asked him…

"Dr. Seto was making it so that I could use it to protect Ichigo-chan. He did not finish it yet and it's still untested, but it seems to be working" Masaya replied…

"Masaya-kun, you're always there for me!" Ichigo cried tears of joy as she clung to her beloved…

"Hey. I swore to protect you, remember?" Masaya replied while winking an eye at her…

"I didn't catch your name" Leon said to his former opponent, the girl with short light-blue hair who could transform into the mermaid Chimera Anima…

"Sayaka, and yours is…?" the girl replied…

"I am Leon. I know a few guys you could hook up with, and I'm sure all of them are way better than the loser who rejected you" Leon said to Sayaka. "But first things first, I want you to guide me to the lab where you girls are cloning all of those Parasite Aliens. This wave of murders needs to end tonight"

Sayaka was amazed. "…You know what? Maybe _you_ 're the warrior of justice here!" she said with a smile and blushing…

"There's no such thing as justice!" Leon replied to her. "I fight for my own reasons"

Leon then looked out the window, worried about Retasu, but saw her with Minto and Zakuro, out of danger…

"Okay. Retasu-chan has already been rescued. Let's go" Leon said…

"Won't you tell her to come with us?" Sayaka asked…

"I've realized this mission is too dangerous for her. She and the remaining Mew Mews should escape before they get killed too" Leon said with sadness in his eyes…

Retasu, Minto and Zakuro headed to the window to check on Leon, but when they looked inside they saw Leon go into an underground passage with Sayaka. Remembering what Sakura had told her, Retasu was instantly horrified…

"Where is Leon going with that girl?" Minto asked…

Retasu immediately jumped back into the inn via the window, intending to follow Leon and see if what Sakura said was true. Minto and Zakuro followed her…

However, at that moment, the nearby kitchen door suddenly opened. "Who's making such scandal? I'm trying to cook dinner here, so please tone it down!" a rather beautiful voice said, though a little irritated…

Retasu, Minto and Zakuro saw somebody come out of the kitchen. That person turned out to be an extremely beautiful 20-years-old woman with long dark blue hair, a curvaceous body and relatively big breasts (though not as big as Naru's), wearing an apron and holding a frying pan. Her style looked an awful lot like Naru's, as if she were intentionally copying her…

"Who are you?" surprised Retasu asked…

"Good evening. My name is Shinobu Maehara" the beautiful woman with the long dark blue hair greeted them politely. "May I ask what brings you here?"

Retasu opened her eyes wide in surprise when she heard her name. However, that woman looked nothing like what Andr described other than the hair color. "Maehara-san! I'm friends with Dr. Seto!" Retasu said to Shinobu…

"I… I don't know what you're talking about" Shinobu said, blushing and looking away as if trying to hide something…

Retasu spoke through the comm. "Dr. Seto! Do you read me? I've met her! It's your beloved Maehara-san! She's right here with me!"

At the bunker, Andr immediately turned on the comm. to speak. "Shinobu-chan? Are you there? Please talk to me!" Andr's voice was heard. Shinobu blushed awkwardly when she heard it…

"Please talk to him, Maehara-san" Retasu offered amicably as she tried to give her comm. to Shinobu for her to talk to Andr…

"Are you telling me that Dr. Seto sent you _all_ the way here _just_ to talk to me?" Shinobu said, and she didn't sound the least bit happy about it…

"She… didn't refer to me by first name…" Andr thought, shocked…

"Well… technically we came here to stop the cloning of Parasite Aliens, but Dr. Seto is worried sick about you. Please let him know that you're okay" Retasu said…

"Please tell Dr. Seto that what we had was nothing but a childhood friendship, and to please stop stalking me!" Shinobu said rather harshly, causing Andr's eyes to fill with tears…

"Maehara-san, _no!_ Dr. Seto loves you with all his heart!" Retasu said…

"Men don't love! They only want to take advantage of us!" Shinobu replied…

"But… Dr. Seto still keeps the shoe that you gave him that day!" Retasu said…

"And _what_ is that _pervert_ doing with one of my shoes? That's creepy! Tell him to grow up or else I'll smack his head with this frying pan!" Shinobu answered angrily, showing her frying pan threateningly…

Andr broke down, seemingly having lost all will to live. He got up from the chair he was on and quietly walked out of the bunker, the only sound being the slam of the bunker's entrance door as it shut…

"I'll go after him to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid" Keiichiro said as he got up and quickly followed Andr…

"Understood. You can leave mission control to me" Ryou replied to him…

Retasu's eyes got teary as well. "Maehara-san! _How can you say that?_ How can you treat the man who loves you more than his own life with such coldness?"

"We haven't even seen each other in _six years_! Aleksandr Seto is just a memory now and he should remain just that: a memory!" Shinobu said…

Retasu cried, unable to say anything else…

"Don't you girls have a mission here? Leave me alone so I can cook tonight's dinner! There's an underground passage over there that takes straight to Su-chan's lab" Shinobu said, pointing in the direction of said passage with her frying pan, she then went back to the kitchen and resumed cooking…

"I don't think she's the mastermind behind this whole plot. Masterminds don't work in the kitchen" Minto commented…

"Let's go, Retasu" Zakuro said…

"But…" Retasu tried to object…

"Forget it, Retasu! She's not coming back to Dr. Seto! Come on, we have a mission to accomplish" Zakuro said, pulling Retasu with her…

Meanwhile, Naru was still beating the crap out of the poor individual inside the cage, who still seemed to be alive despite the brutal beatings. She was stomping on him when she heard a voice…

"Oi, Naru!" Mitsune said as she entered the dungeon. "Those Mew Mews have somehow penetrated our defenses and are in the underground tunnels now"

" _What?_ They must be much stronger than I thought!" Naru exclaimed, surprised. She immediately stepped out of the cage, making sure to close and lock it so the prisoner wouldn't escape. "Come on! We can't let them get to the lab!" she said as she started running through the tunnel with Mitsune…

"I wouldn't worry too much. I already sent Motoko to stop them" Mitsune said…

Now that they had dealt with the Mecha-Tamas, and after some first aid to stop wounds from bleeding, Ichigo, Bu-Ling and Masaya were now running through the underground path beneath the teahouse, hoping to find where the Chimera Anima were being stored. Suddenly, a 22-years-old woman with pale skin and black hair, wearing gothic clothes, stood in their way…

"Who are you?" Ichigo said. "If you're going to try to stop us…"

"On the contrary, I am against them" the woman said as she calmly walked towards them. "My name is Kanako Urashima, pleased to meet you"

"Uh… Pleased to meet you too, I guess. My name is Ichigo Momomiya"

"I'm Bu-Ling Huang!" Bu-Ling said happily…

"And my name is Masaya Aoyama" Masaya said…

"Aoyama?" Kanako asked, surprised…

"Yeah, that's what I said" Masaya said…

"Hmmm… Maybe you do stand a chance after all" Kanako said.

"But what is your purpose?" Ichigo asked her…

"I'm here to rescue my beloved brother, Keitaro" Kanako said…

"So, those creeps also abduct people?" Ichigo said…

"Not exactly. Come with me, I'll explain on the way" Kanako said as she started running in the same direction as them…

Leon was running through yet another tunnel with Sayaka. "How much longer until we get there?" Leon asked…

"We're almost there!" Sayaka said, and true to her word they soon reached the lab. For an inn that looked more than a century old, the laboratory hidden in its underground tunnels looked quite high-tech, even putting Andr's bunker to shame. The door slid open, inviting Leon and Sayaka to come through…

As Leon expected, the machines looked just right for reproducing the Parasite Aliens, and there were lots of them preserved in vats and jars of liquid, ready for use, in shelves all over the place. Typing could be heard, there was definitely a person in there…

Leon turned his right arm into a cannon, ready to stun that person with it if she opposed resistance. As he walked deeper into the lab, what he found left him fascinated. The person doing the typing was a 21-years-old female scientist with dark skin and light green hair, wearing a sailor fuku even if by that age she'd already be long graduated from highschool, eating a banana. However, what drew Leon's immediate attention was that this dark-skinned female scientist was not only completely barefoot, but also typing with her toes!

"Well, _holy shit_ " Leon muttered, feeling the bulge inside his pants…

"Hm?" the female scientist uttered, still with the banana in her mouth as she looked to the side and saw Leon. "Hm! Hmmm!" she greeted him happily, still with the banana filling her mouth…

She did, though, get the banana out of her mouth to be able to talk, as she quickly got up from the chair and happily ran towards Leon. She had so much energy Leon already prepared to battle her…

"My, my! You're pretty well-built! High-performance design! Good materials! …Hmmm, not good. You've been damaged here" the barefoot female scientist said, pointing out the place where Sayaka had slashed him with her sword in their earlier battle…

"Sorry, I made that dent, Dr. Su" Sayaka admitted, smiling and rubbing the back of her head…

"Oh, hi Sayaka-chan! You guided this combat cyborg all the way here, right?" the barefoot scientist said, still happy…

"Yes, Dr. Su. He would like to have a talk with you" Sayaka said…

"That's unfortunate" Dr. Su said with the exact same happy expression and tone as she took a little button out of her pocket and pressed it. The Parasite Alien inside Sayaka's body suddenly exploded, her chest bursting with blood as she dropped dead with a big hole on her corpse…

" _You fucking piece of shit!_ " Leon roared as he tried to punch Dr. Su, but she proved to be about as agile as Bu-Ling, and easily dodged his attack…

"What? An experiment subject should not disobey its master. Much less bring the enemy to the lab. By the way, I'm Dr. Kaolla Su, princess of the kingdom of Molmol! Pleased to meet you!" Su said…


	14. Overwhelmed!

"Experiment subject, you say? I was going to find Sayaka-chan a new boyfriend, you fucking _bitch_! And you just wasted her!" Leon yelled at Su…

"Correct me if I'm wrong… Isn't moving on and finding a new love frowned upon here in Japan?" Su said…

"It is, but I don't care!" Leon said before starting to shoot at Dr. Su with his arm cannon. The agile barefoot scientist cartwheeled out of the way. It looked like she was making fun of him…

Retasu, Minto and Zakuro, meanwhile, were running through yet another underground tunnel. "This is as far as you will get!" Motoko said as she stepped in the way of our heroines. Zakuro, Minto and Retasu took out their weapons and prepared to fight her…

"Now it's time to pay you back for earlier!" Zakuro said…

"That fight was just a practice session to me. That's why I used the wooden sword… But _this_ time…" Motoko said as she slowly drew a real katana. "This time you shall face the true strength of the heiress of Shinmei-ryuu, _Motoko Aoyama_!"

" _Aoyama?_ " Retasu said, shocked…

"That name is…" Minto said…

Meanwhile, Leon still tried to punch or shoot Su, who was just fooling around as she dodged his every attack and made him look like an idiot. One of Leon's shots hit a flask with a Parasite Alien inside, killing the creature…

" _Noooo!_ Don't shot _those_! It took me months of hard work to clone this many of them!" Su complained, her eyes starting to get teary…

"That's right. The mission was to destroy these things, and if she's just going to dodge and not attack…" Leon though, and immediately started shooting every glass thing that had an Alien Parasite in it, killing the clones Su had worked so hard to create…

" _Stop it!_ " Su screamed as she suddenly landed a flying kick with perfect aim on Leon's head, and she still had her foot on Leon's head as he lay on the floor, seemingly defeated. "That'll teach you to mess with a scientist's work!"

But when Su tried to move away, Leon suddenly grabbed her by the ankle, causing her to scream. "Attacking me with a bare foot is a _bad_ idea when you're a girl!" Leon said, starting to relentlessly tickle-torture Su's foot…

" _Hahahahaha! No! Stop it! Hahahaha!_ " Su laughed, but she was not enjoying it one bit. Leon wouldn't let up with his fierce and relentless tickling until Su would run out of air…

At that moment, the lab door suddenly opened. Naru Narusegawa stood there, and she was deeply horrified at what she was witnessing…

Meanwhile Ichigo, Bu-Ling, and Masaya arrived to find Retasu, Minto and Zakuro on the floor, bleeding to their potential deaths. Motoko was standing there with their blood on her katana…

" _Retasu-san!_ " Bu-Ling screamed as she went to check on her…

" _Minto! Zakuro!_ " Ichigo screamed in a similar manner as she tried to tend to Minto's wounds…

Masaya stared angrily at Motoko. Motoko looked back at him and noticed the strange mechanical sword that had Andr's mark on the left side of the blade.

"I am Motoko Aoyama, heiress of Shinmei-ryuu!" Motoko introduced herself formally to Masaya "And I accept your challenge!" she added as she pointed the blade of her katana at him…

"Aoyama?" Masaya said, deeply surprised…

"Aoyama?" Ichigo echoed, surprised just as much…

"What's your name, swordsman?" Motoko asked him…

"My name is Masaya Aoyama" Masaya replied, unable to hide a little smile…

Motoko was shocked. "…I don't remember having seen you in our clan's reunions!" she said with disbelief…

"I don't remember having a family either" Masaya replied with sadness in his eyes and a smile, starting to walk towards Motoko to confront her, being careful not to step on the wounded girls. "So, there _is_ an Aoyama clan of swordsmen… I'm happy to know that. I'm happy to know that maybe I could have had a family" he said happily to his soon-to-be opponent…

"I would never accept you as a member of my clan!" Motoko yelled, getting into battle stance. Masaya then got into the exact same battle stance, which disturbed Motoko even further…

"Good job, Motoko! I see you've stopped the intruders!" Mitsune suddenly said, walking out from the same path Ichigo and the others came from…

"It's that fox woman!" Bu-Ling said…

"And where's that Kanako girl?" Ichigo asked…

"I'd love to stay and watch you win this kendo match, but I have to make sure Naru got that cyborg guy. See you!" Mitsune said as she hurried forth into the tunnel and left everyone behind…

At a turn on the road, Mitsune hid and started grossly transforming as her bones were being repositioned. Turns out that she wasn't Mitsune at all, but rather Kanako…

"How useful those intruders turned out to be! With Motoko and Naru out of the way dealing with them, I will be able to get my dear brother out of here!" Kanako thought to herself, blushing and giggling."Thanks for being my pawns, Tokyo Mew Mew!"

Meanwhile, Naru had just walked into the laboratory to find Leon tickle-torturing Su on her foot. This scene triggered a traumatic response on the deeply horrified Naru…

" _Stop raping my friend, you sick pervert!_ " Naru roared as she charged at Leon, filled with rage…

Leon attempted to block Naru's punch, but her attack was so strong it sent him crashing into Su's computer on the wall…

"What kind of _monster_ is she?" was Leon's first thought as he was vomiting blood from Naru's first attack…

Naru surely wouldn't stop there, already screaming madly as she charged at Leon again, determined to splatter his brains with her fist. Leon was barely able to dodge, but Naru's fist easily drilled into the wall like it was cotton candy, showing just how much damage she could do…

Motoko screamed angrily as she attacked Masaya. However, much to the swordswoman's surprise, Masaya showed an unnatural talent at kendo, able to parry Motoko's every strike even though she was aiming to kill him…

"You're _really_ good!" Masaya complimented Motoko. "You could really have been my cousin"

Motoko clenched her teeth in anger. "I hate to admit, but your skill is befitting of an Aoyama… However…" she said, and then she prepared for a technique…

Ichigo was desperately trying to treat Minto's wounds when she heard Masaya scream in pain. She looked forward and saw Masaya falling down, his sword broken, blood spilling from his body as he fell victim to Motoko's blade…

" _Aoyama-kun!_ " Ichigo screamed as she immediately rushed to his rescue. She cried as she saw her lover agonizing in her arms…

"I'm sorry… Ichigo…" Masaya apologized with what appeared to be his last breath…

"You're next…" Motoko said, ready to complete the carnage she had started…

Meanwhile, Kanako had already reached the cage where Naru had previously been beating up that poor man. "Hang in there, my beloved brother. Your sister is here for you" she said as she got some tools to pick the lock…

"What are you doing, Kanako?" Mitsune said, standing a little too close behind Kanako. Kanako attempted to strike her, but Mitsune easily dodged. "You're not trying to steal Naru's husband again, are you?"

"You mean _my_ husband… and brother" Kanako replied…

"Here's a fun fact: In many cultures outside of Japan, having sex with your cousin is considered incest" Mitsune pointed out. "If you lived in, say, America, your sexual attraction to your own brother would be considered perverted and illegal"

"That may be the case, but 1) I'm adopted and thus not related by blood and 2) we live in Japan" Kanako replied with irony, getting into fighting stance…

"Wow! Calm down! I'm not going to fight you!" Mitsune said. "Your opponents will instead be _these_ " she added suddenly as she took out a small remote control and pressed a button. Red eyes lit up in the dark corners of the dungeon, belonging to the Mecha-Tamas that floated out of the dark and pointed their weapons at Kanako. "You didn't really think we wouldn't have defenses in the room where we keep our treasured punching bag, did you?"

"Tsk! And I was so close from rescuing my dear Keitaro from that harpy Narusegawa's clutches this time…" Kanako said before throwing a smoke bomb into the floor and escaping like a ninja…

Meanwhile Leon attempted to punch Naru, only to find himself on the receiving end of a beating. Naru's movements were minimal but with extreme speed, punching and kicking in such a way it interrupted Leon's own attacks before he could launch them. Naru then grabbed Leon and threw him onto a shelf full of the flasks that contained the Parasite Aliens. The entire shelf fell on Leon, breaking all of its contents on him…

" _Waaaah! You're wrecking my lab, Naru!_ " Su cried…

The seriously damaged Leon destroyed the shelf as he furiously got up and started shooting at Naru with his arm cannon while screaming madly. Unfortunately Naru ran very quickly around the lab and dodged every single shot, which also meant more stuff at the lab getting broken…

" _Stop it!_ You're leaving broken glass all over the floor! Remember I'm barefoot!" Su screamed…

However, Naru soon found an opening for another attack. " _Naru Punch!_ " she shouted…

Naru finished Leon off with a rising punch, sending him crashing hard against the ceiling, vomiting blood as the sound of his metallic bones breaking was heard, his face contorted by the intense unbearable pain. Leon fell to the floor…

"Did he hurt you much?" Naru asked Su as she turned around to check on her with genuine concern…

"I'm ok" Su replied. "… _Look out!_ " she suddenly yelled…

Naru was shot in the back by Leon with the plasma stun gun that is his arm cannon, meanwhile he slowly got up, struggling against the pain with determination…

"I won't stop until I've _ripped out your intestines!_ " Leon screamed furiously before he attempted one final attack on the currently-stunned Naru…

"Please don't move…" Shinobu's voice was heard. "…or else she dies"

Leon stopped just a few centimeters short of attacking Naru. Standing at the lab entrance was Shinobu, holding Retasu hostage from behind, holding a kitchen knife with the tip dangerously close to poor Retasu's throat. Leon's shocked face was enough proof he couldn't let Retasu die…

After a few seconds, Naru recovered and turned around, roaring like a furious beast. She then ripped Leon's right arm off with her bare hand, leaving the screaming cyborg with a sparking mechanical stump…

" _Leon-san!_ " the badly wounded Retasu cried…

With one last punch with all her might, Naru shattered the outer layer of Leon's metallic body, leaving his inner mechanisms exposed. Retasu screamed and cried at this nightmarish situation. Unable to endure it any longer, she fainted…

"Well, that was close… but we managed to defend our base and defeat the intruders, all without the help of any men!" Naru said, proud of herself…

Meanwhile Su was able to get one unusually big Mecha-Tama, about four times as big, to give her a ride so she wouldn't have to step barefoot on all the broken glass. "Yes, but that cyborg still managed to destroy all of the specimens I had cloned, not to mention the lab is now a wrecked mess" she said…

"I will clean it later" Shinobu offered…

"As things are right now, it might be best to destroy it" the voice of a mysterious middle-aged man wearing glasses was heard. Naru, Shinobu and Su watched this serene middle-aged professor enter the ruined lab…


	15. Aftermath of the battle

Retasu woke up in a bed, without her Mew Mew transformation. Her sight in human form was very blurry without her glasses. "Where am I?" she asked weakly…

"Oh! You woke up!" a sweet voice replied…

Someone then handed Retasu her glasses. Once she had them on, Retasu saw a beautiful 20-year-old woman with brown long hair and a sweet look in her eyes, and noticeably large breasts…

"Thank you" Retasu said to this woman, and then she looked at her own body and found all of her wounds from the earlier battle expertly treated."Um… Could you please tell me where I am?"

"You are still at Hinata House" the kind woman replied, which startled Retasu. "My name is Mutsumi Otohime. What's…?" she was saying, but then she bled from the mouth, her eyes went white and she suddenly dropped dead…

Retasu gasped in horror. " _Otohime-san!_ " she screamed, and then she put her fingers on Mutsumi's neck. "…She has no pulse!" a horrified Retasu thought to herself…

And then, Mutsumi slowly got up, still with Retasu's fingers on her neck and the blood on her mouth, smiling sweetly at her…

"She still has no pulse…" Retasu thought, shocked…

"Your friends are recovering as well, surprisingly quickly I might add. I guess having the DNA of endangered species gives you girls a greater determination to survive" Mutsumi said. "Would you like a slice of watermelon?" she added, offering one to Retasu…

"Where is Leon-san?" Retasu asked…

"I'm sorry. Only you girls are being nursed back to health at the house. The boys… were not so lucky. Naru-san insisted on having the males thrown into the dungeon and left to starve" Mutsumi said nonchalantly, horrifying Retasu…

Leon woke up, his sight blurry, only managing to distinguish a vaguely familiar figure…

"Andr? …Is that you?" Leon said. "I'm sorry… Looks like I got my ass kicked again"

Leon's vision eventually cleared. The man he was seeing was not Andr. In fact, the man that seemed to be taking care of him looked like a homeless person, with dirty tattered clothes, his hair in a mess, one of the lenses of his glasses shattered, yet a somewhat short beard. He looked like he had been caged for quite some time…

Also in the cage was Masaya, his wounds from his battle with Motoko having been treated as best as somebody could inside a cage. Leon noticed the improvised bandages on Masaya's body looked like part of the other prisoner's tattered clothes…

Leon tried to sit up, but found his right arm missing, instead having a robotic stump with exposed wires, and the front of his torso also had its outer metal layer broken and his inner mechanisms showing…

"Sorry that I couldn't repair you, but I don't know anything about robotics" the prisoner said in a kind voice, sounding like he was around 26 years old, but appeared older due to his dire state. "An old friend of mine was very good with machines, though. We once did the entrance exam for Tokyo University together… He passed on his first try, but I kept failing and failing, time and time again… I suppose I'm a good for nothing, after all"

"Who the hell are you, anyway?" Leon asked…

"Oh! Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself…" the prisoner said, rubbing the back of his head. "My name is Keitaro Urashima. I'm the manager of Hinata House"

"Yeah, sure" Leon replied with sarcasm, rolling his red glowing cyborg eyes…

"But sir… If you're the manager of the inn, why are you locked up in here?" Masaya asked…

"Ah, you see… My dear wife is a very caring person who worries a little too much about the well-being of the other girls living here" Keitaro explained…

"If she's so kind and caring, why did she throw you in here?" Leon retorted…

"It's not her fault. Her image of men has been damaged, and thus she believes every man is a pervert who will take advantage of any girl at the slightest opportunity" Keitaro said, and then sighed. "Let me tell you: being the manager of an all-girls' dormitory is not an easy job"

"How do you allow them to keep you in this miserable condition? Aren't you the landlord here? You could very easily just kick them out anytime you wanted!" a surprised Masaya said…

"But I _don't_ want to!" Keitaro said, briefly raising his voice before calming down. "What kind of insensitive monster would kick a girl out of his inn? These women have no other place to live in!"

"With all due respect, Mr. Landlord, you're a _fucking dumb-ass_!" Leon said…

"I may be dumb, yes… but I have a heart" Keitaro replied…

" _I demand to have our Mew Pendants back!_ " Ichigo shouted angrily, back at surface level…

"Here, I'm done disassembling them and putting them back together" Su said as she handed the five pendants back to the Mew Mews. "Such wonderful pieces of technology! Too bad the Professor didn't allow me to modify them"

"The Professor?" Minto asked, confused…

"He said that you were the successors of the first team of magical girls that protected Tokyo, and that tampering with or destroying your transformation devices would leave that city unprotected. Such a shame, I could have improved your powers too…" Su said, shrugging…

"Don't relax just yet! We haven't forgotten that you girls are the ones behind all of the recent murders in Kangawa prefecture!" Ichigo said…

"I'm sorry, but proving that won't be possible" Naru said as she entered the scene. "We destroyed the lab and erased all evidence. There's no way you can link us to the murders"

"But you still have that teahouse down the hill where you were giving out the Parasite Aliens to the desperate girls, don't you?" Ichigo said…

"Why don't you girls go down and check for yourselves?" Naru said with a smug smirk…

And so the Mew Mews did, walking down the stone stairs all the way to the teahouse, finding a noisy crowd of girls piling up at the bar…

"I'm sorry, girls. The lucky charms are all sold out. It was a limited-time offer" Mitsune apologized falsely, still sporting that smile of hers. The entire crowd of girls became disappointed. "This might hurt my sales, though…" Mitsune thought to herself…

Frustrated, the Mew Mews tiresomely hiked all the way back to Hinata House, where Naru was waiting for them at the lobby with Mutsumi, Motoko and Su…

"Found any alien parasites?" Naru taunted the Mew Mews, who just clenched their teeth and stayed silent. "That's what I thought… Anyway, I have an offer for you"

"We're not interested!" Ichigo replied…

"Yeah! At least _we_ know your hands are dirty!" Minto said…

"With blood of innocent people, no less!" Bu-Ling said…

"Our hands may be dirty, but not nearly half as dirty as men's intentions towards us!" Naru replied…

The Mew Mews looked confused at Naru's statement, except for Zakuro…

"Men see us as nothing but _toys_! _Sex_ Toys, no less! Every day, millions of women get their breasts groped and their butts slapped! And that's if they even _have_ the privilege of possessing breasts! Those who don't instead get their self-esteems destroyed because those breast-obsessed _perverts_ make them feel ugly!" Naru said…

" _Lies!_ My fiancé never does that to me! He never did!" Ichigo replied…

"Not every girl is as lucky as you!" Naru answered. "Anyway… To have gotten this far past our defenses, it's obvious that you are strong independent women"

"Get to the point already" Zakuro said coldly…

"Would you like to join us?" Naru proposed, shocking the Mew Mews…

"Why would we join a bunch of manipulative murderers?" Ichigo shouted…

"Our plan is to use the power of the Parasite Aliens to start a revolution! We aim to turn Japan into an Amazonian society, where women have the power and men are the low-class slave scum!" Naru revealed…

"Only Japan?" Bu-Ling asked…

"We'll _eventually_ take over the world, maybe in a couple years, but for now we're starting little" Naru explained. "You are the Tokyo Mew Mew, a group of some of the strongest women that exist! With you on our side, very little could stop us!"

"I'm not joining some crazy group of extreme feminists!" Ichigo said angrily. "I understand where you're coming from, I _really_ do! I got harassed by a man myself five years ago, but _not all men are like that!_ My Masaya-kun, for example, is a kind and loving person who treats me and everybody else with respect!"

" _Really?_ " Naru asked with a smug smirk and obvious distrust…

"It's true! And Leon as well!" Ichigo said before turning to Retasu. "Retasu! Tell her how Leon is trying to become a better person just for you!"

However, what came to Retasu's mind were Sakura's words that Leon would someday cheat on her, and she remembered seeing Leon going to the underground tunnels with Sayaka rather than her. Rather than defend Leon, she remained silent…

"Whatever! I demand my Masaya-kun and Retasu's Leon be released from that dungeon of yours!" Ichigo shouted…

Naru was visibly annoyed with Ichigo's blind trust of Masaya. " _Fine!_ If you love that man so much you can have him back! Don't come back begging to join us after he's raped you!"

"Masaya-kun will never do that to me! Our relationship is healthy!" Ichigo replied, firm in her decision…

Meanwhile, down in the dungeon, Shinobu came in carrying a platter of her delicious home-made lunch. "Finally a meal! I may be a cyborg but I still have human functions!" Leon said…

"It smells so good…" Masaya said…

"It's for senpai, not for you" Shinobu said rather coldly to them, and slid the plate under the space below the door…

Keitaro came to the cage bars. "Shinobu-chan, please get me out of here!" Keitaro pleaded, reaching to her with his hand…

" _Don't touch me, you pervert!_ " Shinobu screamed as she hammered Keitaro's head with her trusty metal frying pan with her full strength, before even trying to find out if Keitaro wanted to grope her or not. The blow was so hard that even the tough Leon winced…

"A blow that hard to the head with a metal object should break someone's skull" Masaya noted, scared…

Shinobu walked away. Keitaro, albeit groaning over his headache, was kind enough to share some of his food with Leon and Masaya once Shinobu left. "Well, at least they serve you some surprisingly delicious food in here" Masaya commented as he ate…

"Shinobu-chan cooks it herself. I'm not supposed to be fed, but she secretly feeds me while the other girls aren't looking" Keitaro said…

"For some reason Shinobu is nothing at all like Andr describes her!" Leon complained…

"Andr as in Andr Seto? You met him? Is he alright?" Keitaro asked, surprised…

"One question at a time, okay?" Leon replied angrily. "Yes, Andr Seto and _yes_ , I've been living with him ever since he first rebuilt my body… And he's _not_ alright, last time I saw him he was crying"

"I see…" Keitaro said, the look in his eyes getting sad…

After the three of them finished eating and hid the plate and stuff, Naru came in with Mutsumi, Motoko, Shinobu, Su and the Mew Mews behind her and opened the cage door…

"Oi! Boyfriends of the Mew Mews! Your girls saved you. You can go home" Naru said with angry reluctance…


	16. Unbreakable bond

Leon and Masaya walked out of the cage, with Masaya getting a hug from Ichigo…

"Thank you, Narusegawa-san…" Keitaro said as he tried to walk out of the cage too…

" _You stay inside!_ " Naru yelled at Keitaro as she punched him in the face, sending him crashing loudly against the wall. Immediately after that, Naru went into the cage to further punish the poor man, followed by Motoko armed with her wooden katana, Shinobu armed with her frying pan, and Su happily walking in with a Mecha-Tama. They started mercilessly bashing and smashing Keitaro. How a man could survive so much abuse was inexplicable. Leon closed the cage door hoping these monsters would stay inside, although he knew they wouldn't…

"The exit is this way. Follow me, please" Mutsumi said politely as she guided the Mew Mews, Leon and Masaya out of Hinata House. Near the lower end of the stone stairs they could see Ryou waiting for them with a van. Hopefully that vehicle would be big enough to carry them all back to the base…

"What do you mean Andr is _gone?_ " Leon screamed as they traveled in the van…

"Dr. Seto went off somewhere after his beloved broke his heart. I sent Keiichiro to find out his whereabouts" Ryou replied…

"And _who the fuck_ 's gonna repair me! _Look_ at me! I'm basically walking scrap metal now!" Leon complained…

"Quit whining. I'll repair you" Ryou replied, slightly irritated…

"But you don't know Andr's design plans for me!" Leon said…

"Trust me, I'm as good as him" Ryou said…

Ryou took them all to the temporary Kanagawa joint of Mew Mew Café, smaller than the original and with a less elaborate underground base underneath, but it would serve their temporary needs for as long as they stayed there. A week passed before Leon was fully repaired and the wounds of the Mew Mews healed completely. Masaya would have to wait more due to not having superpowers like the girls, and was spending his days at the hospital. During this time, the murders of boyfriends by their jealous girlfriends continued to happen, albeit in lesser numbers than before…

Things returned to an apparent state of normalcy for the Mew Mews. Ichigo would still try hard to do a good job but inwardly (and sometimes outwardly) complain about it, Minto would still sit at one table sipping tea and not working one bit, Bu-Ling would still be the most spectacular waitress ever, Zakuro would still be rude to the customers, and Retasu was the same clumsy waitress who would easily stumble and break the dishes. However, things did not feel the same…

"Maybe it's because I have the DNA of an endangered wild cat species and I feel the instinct to repopulate, but I can't stop thinking of Masaya-kun. I'm going to visit him at the hospital again tomorrow" Ichigo said to Retasu after work, as they were closing the café. "How's your relationship with Leon going?"

"It's going fine" Retasu lied, though not very convincingly…

"…Now that I think about it, I haven't seen Leon at all since Ryou was done repairing him. Where could he be?" Ichigo said…

Retasu did not answer that question. The girls all headed back to Andr's house. Neither Andr nor Leon was there, so the Mew Mews had the house all to themselves. The next day was Saturday, so the girls didn't have to go to the café, but the murders were still happening as the news media would still remind everyone…

Retasu was taking a walk around the city, and she eventually came back to the train station. The same sign of "January 4th: Never forget" was still there to remind people of the tragic day when a boy was rammed by the train. As Retasu continued walking, she found herself retracing the steps from her first day in Kanagawa, when she escorted that small old lady. And there she was, in fact, sweeping the entrance of her house…

"Good afternoon, dear" the old lady greeted our heroine…

"Good afternoon!" Retasu greeted her back, faking a happy smile. The memories came back to her when she sat at the exact same bench where she had seen Kasumi cry for the first time…

Retasu's next stop was the park, as she saw two girls wearing easy-to-lose footwear sitting where she and Kasumi were. That was the place where Andr had first stolen Retasu's shoe. Funny to think _that_ was the way she met him…

And a short trip from there was the street corner where she first met Leon. "He sure seemed like a bad guy back then… But why did he take such an interest in me in the first place? I'm not pretty or anything…" Retasu thought to herself. "Or maybe it was because I was one-shod at the time and he got aroused by my bare foot… Yes, that has to be it. I was stupid to think someone would fall in love with me at first sight"

Retasu continued on her way, and eventually made it to the streets where she battled with Kasumi's Chimera Anima form. She remembered the night when Leon saved her…

"Oh! Nice to see you again" a voice Retasu had heard before said…

Retasu turned around abruptly to see Sakura standing there in human form…

"You didn't forget about me, did you? It's me, Sakura" she said with an evil smirk…

"I'm not in the mood to fight" Retasu said…

"Oh? You're hurt over your boyfriend cheating on you?" Sakura taunted her…

"Please stop!" Retasu said seriously…

"Please stop? _Please stop?_ Don't _plead_ to me! _Fight back!_ " Sakura screamed angrily, pushing Retasu with just enough strength to provoke her, but Retasu instead fell over without opposing resistance. "Why don't you fight back? _Don't pity me!_ That's not how a woman should be!"

"Why do we have to fight?" Retasu asked…

"Because the stronger woman is the one that deserves to be loved!" Sakura answered…

"What kind of reasoning is that?" Retasu asked…

" _Baka!_ Why do you think your boyfriend abandoned you for my stronger colleague back at the inn? In a mission, a stronger partner is more useful! A damsel in distress that needs to be rescued only gets the team killed!" Sakura said…

"That's not true… I'm not a damsel in distress!" Retasu squealed, starting to cry…

"Then prove it!" Sakura shouted, and she transformed into her cherry-tree Chimera Anima form again. "Come on! Transform and fight me one-on-one to the death!"

"Why does it have to be to the death? Nobody should die!" Retasu objected, standing up and glaring seriously at Sakura…

" _Too weak!_ " Sakura yelled, purposely landing her root attack right beside Retasu, scaring her. "In this world it's kill or be killed!"

"That's not true!" Retasu replied…

"…You really are a stupid girl" Sakura said, already fed up with Retasu's sweetness and kindness. She decided to just crush her under her roots once and for all…

When Retasu closed her eyes and prepared to die, something got in front of her and stopped Sakura's attack. Retasu opened her eyes to see it was Leon protecting her…

"I'm sorry, Retasu-chan… I failed you back there" Leon said, remembering their last mission at Hinata House, thinking of when Shinobu had Retasu hostage with her body already heavily injured by Motoko's attack…

Leon then screamed and punched Sakura with an uppercut, sending her into the air, then jumped and delivered a series of rapid-fire piston-like punches all over her body and trunk, sending her flying back, physically distancing her from Retasu. Leon landed in front of Retasu to continue talking to her…

"When I saw you like that, all wounded and bloodied, with a knife pointed at your throat, I panicked… I just stood there, paralyzed with fear like a fucking idiot…"

Sakura stood back up, screamed furiously and launched a barrage of little sharp pink petals. Leon protected Retasu with his body, getting all the cuts…

"…Don't get me wrong, I _still_ think you're too innocent and idealistic for your own good, and that might be your downfall someday… but that's what makes you all the more special!" Leon said, making Retasu blush and feel flattered…

Sakura tried to crush them under a thick root, but Leon stopped the blow with his hands before it could touch Retasu…

"That's why I want to protect you! Because I will never find anyone else like you! _I never want to see you being hurt ever again!_ " Leon said…

With a loud scream, our cyborg hero grabbed Sakura's root and with all his might flung her elsewhere onto the street, giving her a hard landing…

"Transform, Retasu-chan! She won't stay down forever!" Leon urged her…

Retasu nodded, took out her Mew Pendant and kissed it. " _Mew Mew Lettuce! Metamorphose!_ " she shouted, going through her usual transformation sequence while Sakura was recovering…

" _Chaaaaaa!_ " Sakura screamed furiously as she threw attacks everywhere. Leon and Retasu both skillfully dodged them…

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu shouted as she opened her castanets and hit Sakura with a blast of high-pressure water, stunning her…

With another loud scream Leon charged forward and punched Sakura with all his might, sending her flying several meters away…

Sakura slowly got up, the pain of Leon's punches starting to take an effect on her. She saw Leon calmly walking towards her, looking at her coldly with his glowing red eyes…

"No… Why do I always get defeated by a man? _Why?_ It's not fair!" Sakura cried…

Leon stood right in front of Sakura, staring at her coldly…

"Just hurry up and kill me!" Sakura cried…

"…No" Leon said…

" _What?_ Are you trying to humiliate me?" Sakura screamed furiously…

" _Fuck no!_ I'm trying to show the girl I like that I've changed!" Leon screamed back while pointing at Retasu. Retasu blushed intensely. Flattered that Leon isn't afraid to say that he likes her, but embarrassed that he had to say it in front of every witness living in that street…

" _You son of a…!_ " Sakura screamed as she would try to crush Leon under her roots one last time…

" _Ribbon: Strawberry Surprise!_ " Ichigo shouted in a surprise ambush, shining her light at Sakura, separating the Parasite Alien from her and returning her permanently to human form…

"No… _No!_ " human Sakura said as she tried to reach for the Parasite Alien again, but it got eaten by Masha in front of her eyes…

"It's over" Leon told Sakura as Ichigo and the other Mew Mews walked into the scene…

"It's not over! If you don't kill me, I will rise back up again and get my revenge!" Sakura screamed…

"Without the Parasite Alien I don't think you'll even step out of jail in quite a while" Ichigo replied. Immediately some policemen rushed in and arrested a shocked Sakura. Without the power of the Parasite Alien, she was just a normal human tomboy, easily taken into the patrol car and driven away…

With the battle over, Leon and a now untransformed Retasu sat together at a bench in the park. "I'm sorry I didn't think of that option back when battling the jellyfish girl that night" he said sadly to her…

"But you've changed now, and I'm proud of you" Retasu said…

"You are?" Leon asked, surprised…

Retasu blushed and looked away. "Anyway… What you said back there… was it true? You really… like me that much?"

"I admit it: The very first time I saw you, I just thought you were hot. There's no such thing as love at first sight" Leon admitted, blushing himself as well…

"Oh, I see…" Retasu said with slight disappointment…

"The moment I fell in love with you was during our first mission together, when you told me about your romantically flawed view of the world… I don't know, I think I have a thing for love freaks like you" Leon said as he took Retasu's hand and kissed it…

The words "love freak" didn't sound very flattering to poor Retasu when put together, but she knew what Leon really meant with it, as in someone excessively romantic. She felt flattered to know _that_ , of all things, was the dark and brooding Leon's type of girl…

"This moment we have to celebrate" Leon said suddenly, getting up from the bench, crouching down and gently taking off Retasu's right shoe, revealing the gorgeous bare foot underneath…

"Leon, please _no_!" Retasu said while smiling happily and blushing. Leon started to lovingly tickle and pamper beautiful Retasu's soft foot, causing her to burst into happy laughter. She opposed no resistance and let Leon tickle her foot all he wanted, for she happily enjoyed every second of it…


	17. Reason to live

Ryou and Keiichiro had gone to the supermarket together to get supplies for their café…

"What do you think should be our next move, Ryou?" Keiichiro asked his friend. Luckily most normal people at the supermarket would be too concerned with their own lives to pay any attention to the weird conversation they were having…

"Our latest failure dealt us a devastating blow. Not only has Dr. Seto left us, but the enemy held the girls captive and probably has had enough time to study the Mew Pendants and develop a countermeasure" Ryou replied…

"That's going to be a tough hurdle to overcome…" Keiichiro said…

Andr, meanwhile, was walking seemingly randomly through the streets of Kanagawa prefecture, immersed in his thoughts. He stopped at a certain park and stared at the place as memories started coming back to him…

13 years prior, a little 7-year-old girl with short dark blue hair and wearing flats without socks was sitting at that bench, crying. Then, from the house right in front of the park, the head of a curious boy of the same age with short black hair and wearing glasses spied through the window. The boy was quick to put his shoes on and walk out of his house, carefully looking both ways before crossing the street…

The boy looked at the crying little girl from behind, immediately moved by the poor cute creature's tears. He decided to crawl below the bench from behind and gently take off the little girl's left shoe. Then, the boy's fingers very gently tickled the little girl's adorable bare sole. The girl instantly burst into loud and utterly adorable laughter. He tickled her for a while until she finally seemed a little happier, and then stopped…

"You look a lot cuter when you laugh" the boy said to her…

The little girl finally noticed the boy below the bench who had been tickling her adorable little foot….

"Hello!" the boy greeted her amicably…

The little girl just blushed and stayed silent. The boy then crawled out of under the bench and stood up properly, patting the dirt off his shirt before sitting down beside her…

"Why were you crying?" the boy asked…

It took a while for the little girl to finally respond. "Mommy and Daddy are screaming at each other… I don't know why they're so angry" she said with her eyes full of tears…

"That's really sad…" the boy said as he looked down and his eyes saddened as well. "I have the same problem. Dad is mean to Mom and me, and I don't understand why"

The two little kids stayed silent for a while…

"Oh! I forgot to introduce myself! My name is Aleksandr Seto! You can call me Andr!" the boy said…

The little girl hesitated to reply. "…Mm… My name is… Shinobu Maehara" she finally managed to say…

"That's a cute name Shinobu-chan!" little Andr said happily…

Little Shinobu giggled, still with tears in her eyes. "Thank you" she said, smiling at him. "Um… Can I have my shoe back, please?"

"Uh… Yeah, sure!" Andr said, only now realizing he was still holding Shinobu's shoe. "Let's play together!"

Little Shinobu nodded happily and the two kids soon started playing together in the park, giving birth to a friendship. Back in the present, adult Andr was sitting at that same bench, looking at the unchanged playground equipment he and Shinobu played on…

After that, Andr got up and walked two blocks from the park, arriving at a small bakery. Andr looked up at one of the bakery's windows on the upper floor. 11 years prior, that little bakery was actually a café belonging to the Maehara family, and the window was the window of Shinobu's room. Inside, Shinobu was struggling with her homework when Andr walked by behind her. They were both 9 years old…

"Need some help, Shinobu-chan?" Andr asked…

"Yes, please" Shinobu replied, with worry on her adorable face…

"Let me see" Andr said, and took a peek at Shinobu's notes. "It's easy. This is what you have to do…"

Andr taught Shinobu how to solve the math problems so that she could do it herself later…

"Wow, Andr-kun! You're so clever! No wonder they let you skip a grade at school!" Shinobu exclaimed, amazed at Andr's skills…

"Heh! Thank you, Shinobu-chan…" Andr said, blushing brightly and rubbing the back of his head…

"Here, have this" Shinobu said as she searched in her pocket and gave Andr a small candy. "That's for helping me out" she added with a sweet smile…

"A reward isn't necessary, Shinobu-chan. Just your happiness is enough" a blushing and cutely embarrassed Andr replied…

"I know! I give it to you because I want to! I want Andr-kun to be happy too" Shinobu replied happily…

After that, Shinobu prepared to solve the next problem by herself, but first Andr wanted to show her some love, so he got down to the floor and gave Shinobu's adorable little bare foot a loving tickle…

" _Hahahahaha!_ Oh, Andr-kun! You're so naughty!" Shinobu squealed cutely, blushing and feeling flattered as she enjoyed the tickles on her lovely foot…

Back again in the present, adult Andr started making his way to his final destination. At that moment, a 28-years-old woman with short blue hair happened to come out of the bakery and see Andr walking away, noticing how heavily depressed he was. The woman's eyes showed how she instantly took pity on him, so she started secretly following Andr…

The woman discreetly followed Andr all the way to the local elementary school. It was Saturday, so the school was closed, but the blue-haired woman noticed the easiness with which Andr picked the lock of the outer metal fence, and immediately suspected something was very wrong. He also easily picked the lock of the front door…

Inside the school, Andr remembered one of his science projects. He was only 12 years old and he had already assembled a small robot with multiple functions, impressing the adults and irritating the bullies, all in one fell swoop. The name of Aleksandr Seto consistently ranked highest in the ranking billboard of the students' grades for the entire school. Andr and Shinobu were staring at said ranking billboard, meanwhile in the background a boy of about Andr's age with short black hair and a familiarly harsh-sounding voice (though at a higher pitch) was already picking fights with boys bigger than himself, and losing…

"Look Shinobu-chan! Your rank has gone up! Congratulations!" Andr said to her…

Shinobu blushed somewhat sadly. "I'm still nowhere near your level, Andr-kun" she said, pointing out the fact that Andr was ranked number 1…

Andr blushed. "Well, I've studied a lot on my own. Anyone with enough craving for knowledge can do it, really"

"…Is it true, Andr-kun?" Shinobu asked…

"What do you mean, Shinobu-chan?" a confused Andr said…

"You will soon be taken to a special school for people with superior capabilities… I would like to go with you, but with my current grades that won't be possible" Shinobu said, her eyes getting teary."I don't want Andr-kun to go away"

"Don't say that! I'm not going away from you! …Maybe we're not going to see each other _at school_ , but we live just two blocks away from each other! We're still going to see each other plenty!" Andr replied…

Shinobu's teary eyes looked sweetly into Andr's. The boy blushed intensely as he stared at her, loving her more and more with each passing minute…

Back in the present, Andr was going up the stairs, with the blue-haired woman following behind a prudent distance. Andr climbed up all the way to the roof as another memory came to his mind…

"So… You are going to Tokyo University…" Shinobu said to Andr, both were 13 years old by then. The sun was setting and a gentle breeze was blowing…

"…Yes" Andr admitted…

"So soon?" Shinobu asked sadly…

Andr took a few seconds to reply. "Yes" he finally said. This should have been a happy occasion, but they were both sad…

"Then I guess this is goodbye, Andr-kun" Shinobu said, starting to cry yet again…

"This isn't forever, Shinobu-chan. We'll see each other again someday" Andr said as he faked a smile, doing his best not to cry himself…

"Promise me, Andr-kun…" Shinobu cried…

"I promise you, Shinobu-chan" Andr said, giving her the pinky finger. Shinobu interlaced her own pinky finger with Andr's, consolidating the promise…

Back in the present day, Andr was already on the school's roof, approaching the border. The woman following him saw him take off his shoes as if entering a house, which in Japanese culture could only mean one thing. The woman immediately rushed, dropping her bag of bread and losing one of her high heels on the way, as Andr stepped over the fence and was ready to jump off…

With incredible speed and agility this woman quickly stepped over the fence just as Andr jumped off and grabbed him by the hand just in time…

"Please, lady… let me die" Andr cried quietly…

"Of course not!" the blue-haired woman replied, determined to save Andr. She then showed superhuman strength as she pulled Andr back up to safety. "Why did you decide to do something that crazy?"

"The love of my life now hates me… She was everything to me! Shinobu-chan was my reason to live!" Andr cried…

"Don't give up so easily! I'm sure you two can still make up!" the woman said…

"I doubt it… She called me a pervert and threatened to smack my head with a frying pan" Andr said, still crying. "And she used to be the sweetest girl in the world! Her time in that hellhole of an inn corrupted her!"

"Inn? What inn?" the woman asked…

"Hinata House… The alleged Legendary Inn with the mystical properties… They are the ones behind the murders that have been happening all over Kanagawa… And my beloved Shinobu-chan is with them!" Andr said…

"So _that_ 's where the enemy base is… Thanks a lot, young man. You contributed a huge advancement to my investigation" the woman said. Andr suddenly stopped crying, feeling confused instead…

"May I ask who are you?" Andr asked…

"Dr. Ami Mizuno" the woman with short blue hair replied. "Pleased to meet you"

"Dr. Mizuno? The prestigious medic who graduated from Heidelberg University in Germany? Seriously?" an amazed Andr said…

Dr. Mizuno giggled cutely and blushed. "I'm not really that impressive"

"But what are you doing at Kanagawa prefecture?" Andr asked…

"Two reasons. One is the wave of murders that have started occurring here, I think it warrants some investigation" Dr. Mizuno said. "And the other reason… well, I came to visit my favorite patient" she added, smiling and winking an eye…

"Who is your favorite patient?" Andr asked…

"Oh, I think you know her" Dr. Mizuno replied…

Both of them stood up and started walking back towards the stairs. Only then Dr. Mizuno noticed her high-heel shoe had come off, feeling the floor of the school roof with her beautiful bare toes. "Oh! I think I lost my shoe" she said, cutely blushing from embarrassment…

Andr got ahead and picked up the blue high-heel shoe. "It's a nice shoe" he said. "…Mind if I keep it?"

"What are you? A shoe thief?" Dr. Mizuno asked…

"It's just that you look more beautiful with one bare foot, Doctor" Andr replied…


	18. Sailor Mercury

Andr took his new friend, Dr. Ami Mizuno, to the new joint of Mew Mew Café that had opened in Kanagawa. While the café was not open for business since it was still the weekend, the Mew Mews and their two bosses were reunited inside to discuss their next move. Andr knocked at the door, Keiichiro went to open it for him…

"Dr. Seto! Where have you been?" Keiichiro asked…

"Had some personal matters to sort out. I brought a new friend with me" Andr replied. He then stepped into the café with Dr. Mizuno following…

Retasu instantly recognized the woman. "Doctor? What are you doing here?" she asked, deeply surprised…

"Is that the way to greet your medic?" Dr. Mizuno joked…

"Sorry! It's so nice to see you again, Dr. Mizuno!" Retasu said, unable to hide her happiness…

"That's better" Dr. Mizuno said happily…

"Retasu, do you know her?" Ichigo asked…

"Why, yes! She's my doctor!" Retasu replied…

"Actually, I've been the medic of the Midorikawa family ever since Retasu-chan was 10 years old" Dr. Mizuno said. "And even then I could feel it, her emotions were very powerful. I knew from the moment I saw her that she'd be a great magical girl"

"Wait, _what_?" Retasu said. "But I never told you…"

"Retasu-chan… What do you think those exercise sessions and free martial arts lessons were for? Not to mention the specifics of your diet" Dr. Mizuno revealed, leaving everyone astonished with the exception of Ryou and Keiichiro…

"I found it hard to believe too when she told me on the way here" Andr admitted…

"You're Ichigo-chan, right?" Dr. Mizuno said to her. "I see Usagi-san took good care of you"

" _Usagi?_ " Ichigo said, instantly recognizing the name…

"Something wrong with rabbits?" Bu-Ling asked…

"That was the name of my babysitter! When I was little and both of my parents had to leave, they would leave me in Usagi-san's care! She was an awesome nanny too! We played all the time, running and jumping around all day, and she even taught me martial…" Ichigo said until she was struck with sudden realization. "Wait a minute!"

"Minto-san? …The priestess of Hikawa Shrine would like to thank you for your generous donations" Dr. Mizuno told her…

Everyone looked funny at Minto. Not even the other Mew Mews knew she frequented a Shinto shrine…

"So what if I go to a Shinto shrine? Rei-san taught me a lot of things!" Minto exclaimed…

"Little Bu-Ling Huang, I presume? Minako-sensei sends you her regards" Dr. Mizuno said…

"You know my martial arts sensei?" the surprised Bu-Ling asked…

"Is Makoto-neesan alright?" Zakuro suddenly asked, surprising everyone but especially Minto…

"Yes, she's proud of how far you got, Zakuro-chan" Dr. Mizuno replied happily…

Minto stared at Zakuro, still surprised…

"What are you so surprised at? Your idols can have idols of their own too" Zakuro said to Minto. "Makoto-neesan taught me how to fight and survive in those rough streets"

"What's the meaning of this?" Ichigo asked loudly…

"It means the person present right here has been in the business long before you" Ryou replied. "I never thought I'd see one of them in person, either"

"One of _who_?" Ichigo asked, fed up with all the suspense…

"…The Sailor Senshi" Ryou revealed. The Mew Mews all gasped deeply in shock…

"The mighty group of super-heroines that have saved the world multiple times? I can't believe it!" Ichigo said…

Dr. Mizuno blushed timidly. "You didn't do a bad job with that alien invasion either"

"Dr. Ami Mizuno, also known as Sailor Mercury, is one of the Sailor Senshi, the previous generation that protected Tokyo during the 90's. I never got to meet one personally before, but shortly after the failed first experiment that transformed me into a cat, I met this strange female black cat with a yellow moon marking on her forehead…" Ryou said…

Ryou then remembered that time years ago as the grey cat nicknamed "Alto"…

"I know you are having troubles, but do not worry. You will find five compatible girls for your plan. You will know when you see them" the female black cat had said to Ryou that time…

"I had always wondered how she knew that I'd find you girls…" Ryou said…

"The truth is, sometime after the defeat of Sailor Galaxia, my partners and I realized we couldn't be the Sailor Senshi forever. One day we could die in battle, or become too busy with our adult lives to continue fighting… So, we realized the world needed new protectors for after we're gone" Dr. Mizuno explained. "And you'd better not slack around, because someday _you_ will have to train the next generation of magical girls!"

But the Mew Mews saddened rather than rejoice…

"The girls recently failed a big mission and are not feeling very well about it" Ryou explained…

"I know. Dr. Seto told me. In fact, he asked me if I could give some training to a friend of his" Dr. Mizuno said. "Is Mr. Leon around?"

"I put him in the kitchen" Ryou said, and he guided Dr. Mizuno there…

Inside said kitchen, rather than a cannon, Leon's arm instead had a mixer hand (as in the mixers you'd use for eggs or cream) for this rather unlikely occasion, and he was making said mixer hand spin at high speed merely with the electricity of his own robotic body. Seeing the badass combat cyborg being used in such a mundane task was rather baffling, as Dr. Mizuno's comical face would lend proof. Leon's utterly serious expression while doing this only served to make it more ridiculous…

"I made his hands interchangeable just in case. We usually live alone with no women to do the house chores, so he's a big help" Andr explained…

Later that day, Dr. Mizuno took Leon and Retasu away to some remote place where they could train uninterrupted. Leon demonstrated his strength by easily shattering a huge rock with his fist, something that Naru could also easily do (most anime characters can, really)…

"You're not lacking in strength. In fact, the capabilities of the cyborg body that Dr. Seto gave you are far beyond what pretty much any human could do, but since most of your body is a machine, I cannot train it…However, you are lacking in _skill_ , and since your brain is still human, that's something I can help with. What are all the strength, speed and endurance in the world if you don't know how to properly employ them?" Dr. Mizuno explained…

"Hmmm… That makes sense" Leon said. "Well? What do you have to teach me, doctor?"

Dr. Mizuno then took out magical rod. A blue crystal with the Mercury symbol and a harp appeared. As she held the rod up, the crystal attached to it. "Mercury Crystal Power, _Make Up!_ " she shouted…

The 28-years-old magical girl then swept the rod over her head and a stream of silver water emitted from it and formed her leotard, gloves and boots. A sparkling ripple expanded over her body, a rush of bubbles formed the rest of her fuku, and then she finished with a pose…

"We're having a sparring match. That's the best way to find any flaws in your fighting style" Sailor Mercury said as she got into fighting stance…

Leon got into fighting stance as well…

"That's your first mistake" Sailor Mercury said…

" _What?_ Already?" Leon screamed in disbelief…

"Your stance is awful! It leaves you wide open! No wonder you ended up in such a bad shape in that last mission" Sailor Mercury said. "Here, try to mimic my stance"

After correcting that first mistake, the two prepared for their sparring match…

"Ready when you are" Sailor Mercury said…

Leon screamed and attacked relentlessly. However, those powerful boulder-shattering punches could not even touch Sailor Mercury…

"Your moves are easier to read than a math book for school-graders!" Sailor Mercury said as she easily dominated Leon…

"Incredible! Even after an entire decade she has not rusted!" Retasu thought, marveled by Sailor Mercury's superior skills taught by experience…

"Utterly shameful! I've never seen somebody with such a non-existent defense in 10 years of fighting monsters and villains! And I'm one of the weakest Senshi! If you were sparring with Sailor Venus or Jupiter, you'd have no chance!"

Leon struggled to get up…

"Here's your problem: You're focusing solely in causing maximum damage to your opponent. That may seem like the most obvious way to go, but the more strength you put in your attacks, the slower they come out and the easier to see them coming. If you're faced with an opponent that focuses on speed, you're in for a painful time" Sailor Mercury explained…

Leon flashed back to the curb-stomping he received from Naru, an opponent who happened to focus on speed despite her monstrous strength…

"When you're in the offensive, you want to disrupt your opponent's defense by attacking quicker than he or she can defend. The strength of your blows doesn't matter. They will hurt anyway as long as you land them in soft spots like the face or abdomen. The only moment you want to send a full-strength punch or kick is when you've created the proper opening for it in your opponent's defense. Think of it as the finishing move" Sailor Mercury continued to explain…

Leon then got into fighting stance again, this time the way Sailor Mercury taught him…

"Ready for another go? Okay" Sailor Mercury said as she got into fighting stance too…

This time Leon didn't scream when attacking. He needed to put all that energy in his mind to make sure he could attack faster than Sailor Mercury could defend. He fared a little better this time around, but Sailor Mercury kicked him on the side before he could find any openings. The force of the kick sent Leon against the rock wall…

"Oops! Sorry!" Sailor Mercury apologized. "That happened because you concentrated only on attacking and didn't defend. That's very arrogant of you! Your opponent is not helpless. You have to be aware that your opponent will strike back or even attack before you do"

Leon got up regardless. "How can I focus on attacking and defending at the same time?"

"Well… I suppose you could start on the defensive and counterattack when you get an opening… which makes me think, since you're a cyborg and thus part-machine, you won't get tired. You could take advantage of that in long battles and wait for your opponent to wear out before turning the tables on him or her" Sailor Mercury said…

"So, the defending one always wins?" Leon asked…

"Not always. If you still want to go on the offensive, you will have to break your opponent's defense before he breaks yours, but also watch out for any potential counterattacks" Sailor Mercury replies…

Leon processed all of this information with his still-human brain, closing his eyes and concentrating…

"Okay, let's try again" he said, and went into battle stance…

"Now I'm going to attack, that way you can work on your defense" Sailor Mercury said, and like she promised she attacked with a series of speedy moves that Leon had trouble defending against…

Meanwhile at Hinata House, Shinobu went down the underground path to the cage where Keitaro was being held. Judging by the worried expression on Shinobu's face, something was definitely bothering her. She approached the cage, holding the bento she made with so much love. Rather than keep her distance like she did before, this time she stood right beside the bars of the cage as she sadly stared at Keitaro…

As soon as Keitaro noticed her, he desperately moved towards her as if he were seeing a small ray of hope in the endless dark. "Shinobu-chan! Please get me out of here!" the poor man cried…

Seeing Keitaro's dire state from up close scared Shinobu, making her scream. Somewhere not far from there, Naru heard Shinobu's scream and immediately rushed towards the cage. Keitaro was holding Shinobu's hand, crying and pleading to her, but Naru as usual didn't bother trying to find out Keitaro's true intentions…

" _Leave Shinobu alone, you fucking rapist!_ " Naru roared as she punched Keitaro in the face with so much force she embedded Keitaro into the back wall. The poor guy vomited blood on impact with the wall before falling to the floor…

The bento Shinobu had made had fallen on the dungeon floor as well, ruined…

"Shinobu! Are you alright? Did he hurt you?" Naru said while checking on Shinobu, sincerely concerned about her well-being…

"I'm okay…" Shinobu muttered…

Naru gave Shinobu a hug. "Don't worry, Shinobu. I will _never_ let any perverts do any dirty things to you!"

Shinobu hugged Naru back. "Thanks for always protecting me, Naru-senpai"

Sometime later, Shinobu made dinner for all the residents of Hinata House…

"I think I lost the key to Keitaro's cage" Naru said, searching her pockets while Shinobu was serving…

"Maybe you dropped it somewhere" Shinobu said…

"Don't worry too much about it, Naru-san. Kei-kun isn't going anywhere" Mutsumi said…

"Don't you see how dangerous it is to lose that key? That incestuous sister of his is still trying to steal him for herself!" Naru said…

After dinner, everyone in Hinata House went to sleep. However, few hours before sunrise, Shinobu got up from bed, dressed up and walked all the way to the dungeon once again. Once she reached the cage where Keitaro was imprisoned, she took the key out of her own pocket and opened the cage. The sound of the lock opening woke Keitaro up. He got up and saw Shinobu standing at the entrance to the open cage…


	19. January 4th

The blood-pumping opening of an action-packed shonen anime series was playing on the TV. A little 7-years-old Leon was completely hooked watching it. "How's that possible? How could you have beaten me?" the villain said, falling dramatically, shocked that the seemingly weaker hero managed to win their fight…

"I defeated you because I fight for truth and justice!" the hero said, posing. Not that a 7-year-old kid could understand what was wrong with the supposed moral message of the story (or understand the story much at all), but that hero looked really cool and awesome to someone so young. So, next time the kids were having fun on the playground, this happened…

" _The great Ninja of the Mist, Shidomaru, has arrived!_ " little Leon screamed while posing, completely ignoring the entire point of ninjas. His only "disguise" was a scarf he put over his mouth, with no wind to make it blow around and look cool. A short little twig simulated a kunai knife…

"Great ninja? Pfff! That's stupidest thing I've ever heard! Guns are obviously the best! Nothing beats them!" the leader of a small group of kids about the same age replied, scoffing at little Leon's attempt to look cool…

" _You dare make a mockery of me? I won't forgive you!_ " little Leon screamed as he threw the little twig like a shuriken. The twig bounced harmlessly off the kid leader's body, after which little Leon committed the stupid mistake of frontally charging towards enemies who outnumbered him. The other kids easily beat him up while mocking him, and once Leon was lying on the ground defeated they pretended a mafia-style execution with their toy guns just to rub salt on the wound of their earlier discussion…

This set the tone for what the rest of the poor boy's life would be like. Nothing spectacular, just a hot-blooded but otherwise ordinary powerless boy with delusions of grandeur. He would continue to pick fights in school, such as 4 years later when an 11-year-old Leon was picking a fight with boys bigger than him…

" _I'm going to kill you!_ " Leon screamed as he attacked his enemies frontally again like a moron, naturally getting his ass handed to him. Meanwhile in the background a boy around Leon's age, wearing glasses, was standing together with a girl with short blue hair as they looked at the student grades ranking billboard…

Beaten and bruised, Leon would eventually be reduced to hiding in solitary off-the-way places of the school, sitting alone, left with nothing but frustration over his lack of any fighting qualities, angrily clenching his teeth and little fists while crying…

"I want to be strong… I want to be able to beat my enemies to bloody pulps!" Leon cried. "If only I had the strength I could beat all the bad guys and make the world a better place!"

And after school Leon would have to cross the railroad by the local train station to get back home. He stood as he waited for the train to pass. The machine overwhelmed Leon's ears with its sheer noise…

" _I… hate… trains…_ " Leon growled as he waited for the railroad to be clear, then he crossed safely and continued on his way home. Leon's life would continue like this without any improvements whatsoever…

At the same time, Andr had escorted Shinobu back home, but the screams of Shinobu's parents fighting could be heard from outside. Shinobu started crying, so Andr hugged her. "Don't worry, Shinobu-chan. I will always be here for you" Andr comforted her…

"Oh, Andr-kun!" Shinobu said, burying her face on Andr's chest…

A year later, however, Andr's latest robotics project had earned him an early graduation from highschool at age 13, and he would soon have to leave Shinobu behind to pursue his dream of entering Tokyo University. The date when the entrance exam would be held was only a few months away, and young Andr started attending a preparatory school. It was Andr's first day when someone suddenly bumped into him at the entrance. "I'm sorry" the 19-year-old young man with short hair and glasses said. To tell the truth, he looked like an older version of Andr himself…

"It's alright" Andr replied. "Are you taking the entrance exam to Tokyo University too?"

"Yes, it's my second time" the young man replied."I scored really low last year and they didn't admit me. Maybe if I try again I will finally pass the exam"

"I see… It must be really hard" Andr said…

"Um… No offense, but don't you look kinda young for a guy who's taking an entrance exam on a university?" the young man asked

"Actually, I'm 13" Andr admitted, blushing a little. "I surpassed the expectations of my school, so I graduated early"

" _Wow!_ That's _amazing!_ " the young man said. "I could never possibly be at that level! I bet you will pass the exam on your first try!"

"I don't think so, unless I get really lucky" Andr replied…

"Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. Keitaro Urashima" the 19-years-old young man said with a smile…

"Aleksandr Seto, but you can call me Andr. Pleased to meet you" Andr replied…

Andr and Keitaro quickly became best pals and found out they had mostly similar tastes in almost everything. They would often get together to study and Andr would even help Keitaro with the difficult parts and teach him new stuff. Sometimes they'd hang around with Keitaro's other two friends who were also trying to get into Tokyo University. Meanwhile, 13-year-old Leon's life continued to suck just as much in highschool. "That's _not right_ , dammit!" he yelled to some of his male classmates…

"Exactly! _That_ 's what's so fun about banging a girl against the wall, while ripping her clothes off, telling her how much of a slut she is and continuing to fuck her in the ass! We enjoy doing that _because_ it's wrong!" one of his classmates said in representation of the whole group, while all of them smirked smugly at the naïve Leon, otherwise not bullying anyone else at the moment. In fact, there weren't even any girls around…

" _It's too dirty!_ And there's absolutely no love in that shit!" Leon screamed at them…

"Oh, yes there is! As in we _love_ penetrating the bitch hard!" the classmate replied gleefully as he and his pals laughed derisively at Leon's idealism. "I've got an idea! Why don't you become our bitch so we show you how much we love you?" he added just to rub salt in the wound…

" _You cocksucker!_ " Leon roared as he once again would repeat the same mistake of going Leeroy Jenkins against a whole group of his classmates, predictably getting his ass handed to him yet again, and then kicked while down on the floor…

"You even attacked us head on? _Ha-ha-ha!_ How stupid can you possibly be? Don't you know backstabbing your enemies when they're alone is far more effective? Here's an even better idea, _use a fucking gun!_ What made you think you could take us all on with just your fists? You're not Vegeta, you dumb-ass!" the classmate continued to mock Leon for his stupidity (while making some very valid points, I might add)…

"You won't get away with this… Justice will always win in the end!" Leon stupidly proclaimed…

"Look at the big damn hero of justice! Let's see you come out victorious from _this_!" the classmate said…

Nobody came to save Leon, and he never got the upper hand or turned the tables on his enemies. All he got for fighting in the name of righteousness was a monumental beating courtesy of his classmates and his pants getting stolen by one of them for further humiliation. Leon was no hero. In Andr's side, the day of the entrance exam finally arrived. "Are you okay, Andr?" Keitaro asked…

"I'm not sure…" Andr replied. "The subjects we studied here are so much harder than in highschool… Even for an alleged 'boy genius' it has been a tough challenge…" Then Andr looked down, his eyes sad and his body trembling with insecurity. "Keitaro-san… What if I fail the exam?" Andr said…

"Don't say that, Andr-san! I've seen what you're capable of! I'm sure you have this one in the bag!" Keitaro replied…

"How do you manage to remain so calm about it all?" Andr asked…

"Actually, I'm nervous too… But one must be optimistic! I believe in myself! No matter how many times I fail, I will try again and again until I fulfill my promise!" Keitaro said…

"Your promise?" Andr asked, intrigued…

"Yeah, actually… it's kind of an urban legend told around here. You see, when two people who love each other very much enter Tokyo University together, they will be together forever" Keitaro said, and then he stared into the blue sky with eyes full of emotion. "You know? …That's the entire reason I want to enter this university so badly"

"You're going through _all_ of this _just_ so you can be with a girl?" a confused Andr said. "That's… kind of an odd reason to enter a university, let alone one of this level"

"You think so? I'm convinced that _nothing_ is more important than finding the love of your life" Keitaro replied…

"Maybe I don't worry about that because I've already found my love long ago" Andr said as he blushed and thought of his sweet Shinobu. "There are other things in life aside from romance, though. That's why I'm here. I'm going to become a robotics scientist someday. I've always been fond of building and creating stuff"

"That's nice. _My_ dream is just to find love. I could live _any_ kind of life, under _any_ conditions, as long as me and my destined other half are together forever" Keitaro said. "I remember meeting a girl when I was 4 years old… I promised her that we'd enter Tokyo University together. Sadly, I don't even remember who that girl was. But I've got faith that Tokyo University will reunite me with her"

"You made such a significant promise when you were _only 4_? Man! That's before you even had capacity for reason!" Andr said, a little shocked…

"Does love know reason, Andr-san?" Keitaro said…

"…I guess not" Andr replied with a smile, and both guys laughed…

And so, they did the exam. Tokyo University proved it does not joke around, and even for a genius who skipped grades like Andr, the questions and problems were a challenge that pushed his brain to the limit…

"I… passed?" a shocked Andr said, days later, when he got the result of the exam. "On my first try… _I passed!_ " he said again, overjoyed. However, later that same day, Andr found Keitaro sobbing…

"Don't worry about me, Andr-san… I'll just have to try again next time… You just… go and make a bright future for yourself" Keitaro said as he tried to look happy, though he couldn't hide his tears…

"I'm sorry. Even with my help you couldn't pass the exam… I failed you, Keitaro-san" Andr said, sad for his friend…

"You didn't fail me. I just forgot everything you taught me. I'm solely to blame for it" Keitaro said. "But I'm not giving up! I swear on my family's honor that I will enter Tokyo University together with my love!"

"Hey! Don't go saying things you might regret later! If I had failed this exam, I would have tried an easier university instead" Andr said…

One year later, while still living in his new home in Tokyo to attend university, 14-years-old Andr received a Christmas letter from his friend about his new job as manager of his grandmother's inn. Andr then decided to pay a surprise visit to him to celebrate the New Year. "So, here's where you've been working all this time, Keitaro-san" Andr said as he looked at Hinata House from outside. It was New Year's Eve…

However, as he was about to call on the front door, Andr heard an angry woman scream. He instinctively moved aside, which proved to be a wise move when a body was thrown with such force it broke the door from the inside and crashed into a nearby rock, breaking it from the sheer force of the impact. It would have crushed Andr as well if he had stayed…

Andr went to check on the person who had been expelled with such force. He was shocked to discover it was indeed his friend Keitaro, his glasses having one broken lens, revealing a black eye, bleeding from the head, nose and mouth, his cheek bulging, his mouth missing some teeth and even an arm and leg contorted in painful positions as their bones were broken. And that's not counting the bleeding katana cuts all over his body and his third-grade burns…

" _Come back here, you dirty pervert! I'm not done with you!_ " Naru roared as she walked out of the house with Keitaro's blood in her knuckles…

"Keitaro-san! …Keitaro-san, what happened? Why is this happening?" Andr desperately called as he shook Keitaro's wounded body…

"What's with you? Are you going to defend that pervert?" Naru said as she cracked her knuckles, ready to bash Keitaro some more…

"I shall cut you down to size, Keitaro Urashima" Motoko said, her wooden sword also drenched in Keitaro's blood…

"I've yet to finish testing my latest invention!" Su said as she arrived with the high-tech weapon that could very well have caused Keitaro's burns…

Andr was absolutely terrified. " _What the fuck, Keitaro-san?_ You didn't take the entrance exam to Tokyo University for this!" Andr cried desperately…

"Andr-san…" Keitaro said weakly, and then he started screaming in pain. Andr then noticed all of Keitaro's wounds visibly regenerating at an impossible speed, and this regeneration process seemed to be what was causing Keitaro to squirm in pain. In a matter of seconds, he was fully healed, though still numb from so much pain…

"What are you?" Andr asked, horrified…

"Hi, Andr-san! …I guess you received my letter" Keitaro said, and then got up. "Look! I found the girl of my promise: Narusegawa-san! We're going to enter Tokyo University together, just like I promised her when I was 4 years old" he added, pointing with her hand at Naru…

" _I'm not your girlfriend!_ " Naru roared as she savagely pounded Keitaro right in front of Andr's horrified eyes. "I will never forgive you for making poor Shinobu cry!" she suddenly added…

" _Shinobu?_ " Andr thought, hit with sudden realization. As he looked towards the inn, he could notice his beloved sweet Shinobu. Now 14 years old, spying from inside. The moment she saw Andr, however, she just went back inside without saying anything. " _Shinobu-chan!_ " Andr screamed as he tried to reach for her…

"What's your business with Shinobu, you big pervert?" Naru said as she blocked Andr's path together with Motoko, both women getting ready to tear him to shreds. Andr screamed and ran away as fast as he could. " _You won't escape!_ " Naru roared as she and Motoko ran after him. Andr ran into the forest at night, with Naru and Motoko in hot pursuit like in a horror movie. He only got away by hiding in a small cave and waiting for them to go away, trembling in sheer terror and praying they didn't find him…

Exactly four days later from that incident, somewhere near the train station, Leon once again clashed with classmates, this time on the street. The particular classmate he tried to attack easily grabbed Leon by the face and single-handedly gave him a humiliating beating once again. "Stay on the floor, _hero of justice_! Nobody gives a shit about your boring moral code!" the classmate mocked him while he and his pals laughed at him…

Meanwhile, Andr waited for Shinobu at the small bakery that used to be her house, knowing that day she would pass by there. "So, that's how it is, Shinobu-chan…"

"Keitaro-senpai accepted me into his inn after I ran away from my parents. I now live with him" Shinobu said…

"Shinobu-chan, you must get away from there!" Andr said, suddenly showing desperation. "You can't live with those monsters! They're going to hurt you! Please, come to live with me!"

"Come to live with you?" Shinobu said, suddenly crying. "You left me behind to follow your silly dream! Now you're telling me to come back to you? Keitaro-senpai was there when I needed him the most and I'm going to marry him!"

With this, Shinobu just ran away from Andr, towards the railroad crossing, even though the bell was ringing and the barrier was down, indicating a train was about to pass. A very frustrated Leon was walking by that same intersection, hating his life. Shinobu's shoe got stuck between the rails, slipping off and exposing her beautiful bare foot as she was not wearing socks. Annoyed, and not wanting to go one-shod, Shinobu tried to pull her stuck shoe out, but the coming train's horn sounded as it headed straight for her. " _Shinobu-chan!_ " a horrified Andr shouted, knowing he wouldn't make it in time to save her…

" _Get the fuck out of there!_ " Leon suddenly screamed as he pushed Shinobu out of the train's way, successfully saving her although she couldn't retrieve her shoe. Leon himself, however, could not get out of the train's way in time. That January 4th, the train rammed Leon in front of the horrified eyes of many witnesses, including Andr and Shinobu…

Back in the present day, Leon and Andr were in Andr's art gallery, with Leon admiring the pictures of the various girl feet. "We've come a long way since those days, huh?" Leon said…

"That's for sure, Leon" Andr replied, looking at that special shoe he got from Shinobu that day, the exact same shoe that remained on Shinobu's foot that day when its twin got stuck on the rails…


	20. The girl who hurt her love

By morning, as soon as business opened, Shinobu took Keitaro to the barber shop to give him a haircut and shave his beard, to a clothes shop to replace his tattered clothes with new ones, and even bought him new glasses. 26-years-old Keitaro Urashima was once again back to a civilized look after years of being locked in a cage…

"Going shopping with you was fun, Senpai…" Shinobu told Keitaro as she walked with him. "What do you want to do now?"

"I don't know… I've been locked up for so long I don't know what to do with so much freedom" Keitaro replied sadly as he stared into the vast blue sky…

"Maybe we could go to a soda fountain…" Shinobu suggested…

But Keitaro ignored Shinobu's last comment as something caught his full attention. He saw a familiar figure walking on the opposite sidewalk, one resembling Keitaro himself. Shinobu saw him too, and she didn't look very happy about it…

"Andr-san!" Keitaro greeted. Andr looked towards the opposite sidewalk and was horrified to see Keitaro there. Without a word he ran away. "Wait! Andr-san!" Keitaro said as he tried to cross the street by running. Keitaro was ran over more than once in the attempt, yet his grave wounds regenerated within seconds as he stood back up and continued to run after him. Shinobu followed once the traffic lights were the proper combinations of colors…

Andr quickly locked the entrance door to his house and leaned with his back on it as if trying to make sure to not let someone pass. He was breathing heavily and sweating…

Andr heard a knock on the door behind him. "Andr-san! It's me, Keitaro Urashima!"

" _Go away!_ " Andr yelled, surprising Keitaro. Meanwhile Shinobu finally caught up to Keitaro and was catching her breath…

"Andr-san! Don't you recognize me? It's me, your friend from Tokyo Univ…!"

"You're _dead_ to me!" Andr yelled before Keitaro finished the sentence. Keitaro looked confused…

"If I ever did something that hurt you, please forgive me" Keitaro said sadly…

"No, it's alright! After all, Japanese people never give up a promise! Even if they made it shortly after they were out of the diapers and too young to think at all! How the hell can a half-American guy like me possibly understand that?" Andr said with some irony to his words…

Keitaro's facial expression went serious. "I know it wasn't the smartest thing to do… But not living up to my promise would dishonor my family and ancestors. I don't know how things are done over there in America, but here in Japan social interactions are a higher priority than one's own life!"

Andr sat down on the floor, with his back still against the door, looking down and holding his head with his hands. "Please go away… Please stop haunting me!"

Shinobu then bludgeoned Keitaro's face with the frying pan. "If you won't take me somewhere romantic _right now_ , I'm going to put you back into the dungeon!" Shinobu threatened. Hearing her voice only made Andr even sadder…

"Where would you like to go, Shinobu-chan?" Keitaro asked as they continued walking…

"That place looks cute!" Shinobu said while pointing the temporary Mew Mew Café joint that Ryou had set in Kanagawa. As usual, the building had this exceedingly cute aesthetic design with hearts and pastel pink and yellow colors. Everything about it spelled "romance"…

Keitaro and Shinobu went into the Mew Mew Café without hesitation. Shinobu was charmed by the cute design of everything in it. Keitaro politely pulled a chair for Shinobu to sit on, and then he sat at the other side of the table…

"What's your order going to be?" said a voice that Shinobu immediately recognized. The startled blue-haired beauty looked with distrust at the gorgeous waitress clad in a cute green dress, who was none other than Retasu…

"Have we met before?" Shinobu asked. The fact that Retasu is the Mew Mew that changes the most upon transforming made her a bit harder to recognize…

"Um… No" Retasu lied, not very convincingly…

"We're going, Senpai" Shinobu said as she stood up, visibly upset, and started walking towards the exit…

"Please wait, Maehara-san!" Retasu pleaded…

Shinobu stopped and turned around to face Retasu. "I'm sorry, but I'm not going back with Dr. Seto"

"You're wrong! That's not what I want! ...In fact, I think you have every right to move on with your life" Retasu said while briefly glancing at Keitaro. "If I had known you had a boyfriend, I wouldn't have tried to pull you back to Dr. Seto. I'm sorry for not realizing it sooner" she added before respectfully bowing to Shinobu…

"It's alright" Shinobu said as she sat back at the table with Keitaro and read the menu…

In the meantime, Sailor Mercury continued to train Leon. The cyborg was making better use of his abilities now, but still struggled to keep up the pace. They both stopped after a while…

"Don't feel bad. That's an unbelievable amount of progress for the second day of training" Sailor Mercury said…

"It's still not enough! I know I'm bound to fight that ahoge bitch again soon! I need to be prepared when that happens!" Leon said, clenching a fist…

"Life is not a manga, Leon-kun. You won't become an instant expert after a day or two of training. That's just ridiculous" Sailor Mercury replied…

"What if those bitches from the so-called Legendary Inn attacked today?" Leon asked…

"You're not alone. You have Retasu and the other Mew Mews on your side, and I will help too. What's important is that you have a battle plan and trust your friends" Sailor Mercury said. "Let's take a rest and see how everyone else is doing"

Back at the café, Shinobu and Keitaro had already decided on their orders. "Yes, yes! Right away!" Retasu said happily to them as she took their order and went to the kitchen to get it…

"Are you really going to serve them? They're from the same inn where our enemies have their base of operations" Zakuro whispered to Retasu at the kitchen's door…

"Although why would they come _here_ , of all places?" Ichigo asked…

"Maybe to spy on us…" Bu-Ling said…

"No. Maehara-san really wants a romantic date with that man! I'm sure of it!" Retasu said…

"But who _is_ that man, anyway? I don't remember him" Minto pointed out…

Keitaro stood up. "I need to use the bathroom like a civilized person for once"

"Alright, Senpai. I'll stay and wait for our order" Shinobu replied, nodding…

However, as he tried to walk towards the bathroom, which was towards the opposite direction from where Shinobu was, Keitaro clumsily tripped with… apparently nothing…

"You've got to be kidding me" Minto said as all five Mew Mews watched the scene…

If Keitaro had just tripped and fallen flat on his face, that would have already been embarrassing, but instead the man decided to struggle to keep his balance, while clumsily weaving his way in-between the people walking through the café. The whole thing soon devolved into a ridiculous feat that had Keitaro dancing for balance all over the café before finally landing face-first on Shinobu's breasts. The Mew Mews were speechless. The clients silently laughed, finding it funny simply because a man landed face-first on a girl's boobs…

" _Waaaaah! Pervert! You want to abuse me!_ " Shinobu screamed hysterically as she started bashing Keitaro's head and smacking his face with her metallic frying pan, pummeling him with all her might. What had begun as something ridiculously funny suddenly turned horrifying. The floor of the café got stained by the droplets of blood, and each thunderous blow further deformed poor Keitaro's face. The clients started to feel disgusted, some of them getting up and storming out of the place…

"What kind of man is able to be hurt by a woman? How weak! He's making such ridiculous that his ancestors must be ashamed of him!" some clients even commented…

"Maehara-san, _no!_ " Retasu squealed as she, Ichigo and Bu-Ling held Shinobu back, while Minto and Zakuro helped Keitaro up…

"Don't defend this pervert! He must not go unpunished!" Shinobu declared out loud…

"He just tripped and happened to somehow land on your breasts!" Ichigo objected…

"Yeah, by some stupidly contrived coincidence" Minto added…

"That's not true! He wanted to suck my breasts in public! _All_ men are _perverts_!" Shinobu yelled angrily…

"Maybe you should watch less hentai!" Bu-Ling said to Shinobu…

Keitaro's face then started slowly regenerating back to normal, but painfully for him as it caused him to scream and squirm in agony…

"What's up with him now?" Minto asked, annoyed…

"His face…!" a shocked Ichigo said as the Mew Mews noticed Keitaro had completely regenerated from all damage in seconds, even his bleeding wounds closed. Retasu, Ichigo and Bu-Ling let go of Shinobu as they watched this impossible thing happen…

"It's official, Keiichiro: _That_ guy breaks all laws of physics _and_ biology!" Ryou said to his friend as they watched the scene from a distance…

Meanwhile, Leon and Dr. Mizuno entered Andr's house. " _I'm home!_ " Leon shouted inside, but got no answer. "Where the fuck is Andr?"

"Maybe he's out shopping?" Dr. Mizuno said…

Leon started searching for Andr all over the house, but found no sign of him. "He's still depressed over his dear Shinobu. I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid" he told Dr. Mizuno…

Back at the café, Keitaro and Shinobu were taken to Ryou's management office, where he and Retasu spoke to them in private while the others attempted to keep the façade of a normal café…

"Explain that undignified behavior you just displayed at my café!" Ryou demanded…

"Keitaro-senpai is a pervert who wanted to defile my breasts! You all saw it!" Shinobu said…

"It was on accident, Maehara-san! We all saw it!" Retasu said…

"Naru-senpai was right! Every man is a pervert! The only solution is to smash their heads in as she says!" Shinobu said…

"But Maehara-san! I… I thought you _loved_ Urashima-san!" Retasu said with tears in her eyes…

Shinobu blushed and her eyes went sad. "Yes… Yes, I still love him! Even though he's been married to Naru-senpai for four years now, I'm still going to marry him! I'm determined to marrying Keitaro-senpai no matter what!" she cried…

"I'm baffled at this girl's logic" Ryou said as he facepalmed…

"Logic does not govern a woman's heart, Shirogane-san" Retasu replied to him before talking to Shinobu. "Maehara-san, I support your union with Urashima-san 100%, but if you love Urashima-san so much, then please do not treat him with such violence!"

"On the contrary! Keeping your man in check is the first step to becoming a strong independent woman! Naru-senpai taught me that!" Shinobu said…

Retasu shook her head. "If you love your significant other, you don't _need_ to keep him in check! You love him, therefore you trust him!"

Shinobu sighed. "You remind me of how I used to be… A naïve little girl who would always try to see the best in everybody"

"I see nothing wrong with that" Retasu replied seriously…

"Open your eyes! All men are rapists! …And I don't know martial arts like Naru-senpai, or have the strength to defend myself. I cannot use weapons like Motoko-san, either. This frying pan is all I have to defend myself with" Shinobu said…

"Maehara-san…" Retasu said, worried about Shinobu…

"All the girls in Hinata House are always so nice to me. In fact, Naru-senpai and Motoko-san are always protecting me" Shinobu said, a bit more calmly. "But someday they might not be around. That's why Naru-senpai says I have to learn to defend myself"

"But the man you love is _not_ your enemy! When you love someone, you comfort and protect him, like Narusegawa-san and Aoyama-san do for you! Love is to make the other person happy and expect nothing in exchange! You should make Urashima-san's life happier! Don't destroy him, _protect_ him!" Retasu said…

Keitaro felt moved by Retasu's sweet words, and smiled. "What are you smiling at? You're staring at her chest, aren't you?" Shinobu said angrily before once again bashing Keitaro's face with the frying pan…

"Maehara-san, please _stop_! You're going to cause him a permanent injury!" Retasu pleaded…

"Hmph… No injury is permanent on Keitaro-senpai" Shinobu said, and then Retasu and Ryou watched Keitaro's face regenerate from the blow in seconds, quickly back to normal as if nothing happened. "See? I can clobber him all I want. There is no consequence!"

"…You may go" Ryou finally conceded…

"But Shirogane-san…" Retasu tried to object…

"It's obvious she's not going to change her mind! As long as her actions have no consequences, she will continue to commit them" Ryou said…

"Sorry for wasting your time" Shinobu apologized to Ryou and bowed respectfully before walking out of the manager's office with Keitaro, and they made their way out of the Mew Mew café…

"Maehara-san!" Retasu suddenly called from behind them on the street. Shinobu and Keitaro turned around and saw Retasu, still willing to confront them…

"You insist on defending Keitaro-senpai… You're in love with him too, aren't you?" Shinobu said as she prepared to use her weaponized frying pan on Retasu…

"Suppose I said yes. Would you hit me with that frying pan too?" Retasu asked seriously…

"Keitaro-senpai doesn't need any more girlfriends. He has enough" Shinobu replied…

"I don't care! Since you're so mean to the man you love, I… I-I'm _going to marry Urashima-san to take him away from you_!" Retasu said after she overcame her hesitation…

" _Over my dead body!_ " Shinobu roared…

"Shinobu-chan, _stop!_ " Keitaro shouted, but couldn't stop Shinobu as she swung her frying pan full-force towards poor Retasu's beautiful face…

The metallic frying pan connected a devastating blow on Andr's face. The scientist got in the middle at the very last second and received the blow for Retasu. Andr was lying on the sidewalk with his head bleeding, his glasses broken and his body not moving at all, while Leon and Dr. Mizuno arrived at the scene a second too late. The other Mew Mews as well as Ryou and Keiichiro also gathered there…

"Andr-kun…" a shocked Shinobu thought…


	21. Battle at the Kanagawa hospital

Dr. Mizuno wasted no time giving Andr first aid while Ryou called an ambulance. Andr was swiftly taken to the hospital, where Dr. Mizuno herself ran the diagnosis. She later explained the damage to Andr's head by Shinobu's metallic frying pan with the X-Ray pictures. "His mandible is fractured, as well as these other face bones. The left ear bones are shattered, I'm afraid he will lose hearing on that side. His left eyeball has also been damaged, meaning he will have to lose it too. We're lucky that blood hasn't leaked onto the brain. That would have killed him in seconds"

"But… Andr-kun is going to be okay in a few minutes, right? Just like Keitaro-senpai…" Shinobu said, worried…

Shinobu's stupid statement earned her a death glare from Dr. Mizuno. "I'm _shocked_ at your sheer irresponsibility, young lady!" the doctor scolded her angrily. "I have no words to describe the utter insanity and your complete lack of regard for human life!"

Shinobu started crying. "I'm sorry…"

"Oh, no! Don't think crying will get you any sympathy! You almost _murdered_ Dr. Seto!" Dr. Mizuno said to Shinobu…

" _I'm sorryyyyy!_ " Shinobu cried even louder and more inconsolably…

" _That's enough!_ I won't allow you to talk to her like that any further!" Keitaro said angrily as he stepped in Shinobu's defense…

"Defend her all you want. That doesn't change the fact she could have killed someone" Dr. Mizuno replied with tranquil fury…

After that, Keitaro and Shinobu got out of the hospital room where Andr was…

" _You fucking bitch!_ " Leon roared…

"Leon-san, don't!" Retasu said as she and the other Mew Mews were holding Leon back to prevent him from ripping Shinobu apart…

" _You think life is fucking Tom & Jerry? You think hurting people is a fucking game? You fucking piece of shit! I'm going to kill you! And then I'll go for your little whore friends at that Legendary Brothel of yours, rip their legs off and beat them to death with their own limbs!_" Leon roared madly as tears from his furiously-glowing red cyborg eyes had soaked his face…

Leon managed to break loose of the Mew Mews' grasp and punched at Shinobu with all his might. Keitaro got in the way and received Leon's punch for her, which sent him flying through several walls. The Mew Mews resumed their hold of him as Keitaro painfully regenerated his wound, while Leon would continue to furiously scream and cry…

Shinobu then turned around and saw Ryou and Keiichiro seriously glaring at her. "You're lucky that Retasu convinced me not to call the police on you" Ryou said…

Shinobu ran away crying, passing by a random schoolgirl with long straight light orange hair on the way. About two hours later Shinobu was sitting on a bench all alone, crying her heart out, when Retasu approached her and sat by her side…

"Do you see now? …The reason why we care for and protect those we love?" Retasu said, still in her calm and sweet voice…

"What if I really killed Andr-kun? I won't be able to live knowing that!" Shinobu cried…

Retasu hugged Shinobu and let her cry on her chest…

"Naru-senpai told me that I had to make people respect me! That I had to be strong! That I had to pummel those who opposed me with all my strength!" Shinobu cried…

"You have spent way too much time living at Hinata House, Maehara-san. Now you know that Urashima-san's strange powers are something unique to him. In real life you can't freely bash people without consequence" Retasu said…

"But it's too late to save Andr-kun!" Shinobu cried…

"It is…" Retasu admitted sadly. "But you must learn from your mistake to avoid repeating it in the future"

Shinobu continued crying on Retasu's chest…

"Maehara-san… If you really love Urashima-san, take good care of him. Protect and support him" Retasu said…

"But what if he really is a pervert like Naru-senpai says?" Shinobu asked, still crying…

"If you truly love him, your heart will know the answer" Retasu replied…

Shinobu continued to cry silently for several minutes while in Retasu's hug. "Thank you, Midorikawa-san…" she whispered…

Now that Shinobu felt better, Retasu let go of her, and the two girls smiled at each other. It seemed like the beginning of a beautiful friendship…

" _Shinobu!_ " a woman's voice suddenly screamed. Retasu and Shinobu looked and saw none other than Naru Narusegawa running towards them…

"It's the leader of those extreme feminists from the inn!" Retasu thought as she suddenly stood up and prepared for battle…

But, rather surprisingly, Naru did not engage in battle, instead going straight to hug Shinobu. "Are you alright, Shinobu? Don't worry! That filthy pervert Keitaro won't be able to harm you any further as long as I'm here!" Naru said in a heartfelt manner…

Retasu was amazed. At first sight, Naru seemed to be just the ruthless leader of an extreme feminist group, but for the first time Retasu was seeing Naru display some humanity…

Naru turned around. "Everyone! I found her!" she shouted. Motoko, Mitsune and Su gathered around Shinobu…

"Shinobu, you've been crying…" Naru said as she noticed it on Shinobu's face…

"Did that woman do something to hurt you, Shinobu-san?" Motoko said as she faced Retasu and unsheathed her wooden sword…

" _No!_ She didn't, Motoko-san! Midorikawa-san comforted me when I was crying just now" Shinobu said, much to Retasu's relief. Motoko sheathed her sword without hurting Retasu…

"That can only mean one thing…" Naru said angrily as she walked up to the hospital entrance. " _Keitaro! Get your ass here so I can kick it so hard you'll burn in the atmosphere!_ "

This being a hospital, Naru's screaming was heard by Leon and the Mew Mews as well. Keitaro cowered in fear…

"Is that your wife?" Ryou asked Keitaro from behind…

Keitaro nodded. "That's my beloved Narusegawa-san… I guess I should be going and face my punishment"

Having said that, Keitaro summoned courage and started walking towards the hospital entrance. However, once he found himself alone in the hallways, the schoolgirl with light orange hair that Shinobu passed by before was now stalking him. "Do you know the legend that says that star-crossed lovers are reborn as siblings in their next life?" she said to him from behind once she got close enough…

The startled Keitaro screamed like a girl and turned around as he found himself face to face with this schoolgirl who suddenly was staring at him maniacally…

"You don't have to go back to your ugly wife and get punished… That's right, there's no better love than sibling love… It's okay to marry your sister… Come with me" the creepy orange-haired schoolgirl said with a smile as she offered her hand to Keitaro…

Keitaro smiled. "I'm sorry, but I made a promise. My loyalty is with Narusegawa-san"

"Don't fucking come with that bullshit!" the creepy schoolgirl said in a sudden burst of rage as she gripped Keitaro's arm so hard she broke it, and mercilessly pulled the poor screaming man as she tried to force him to come with her. "I'll deliver you to boss Kanako whether you're whole or in pieces!"

"Please stop! You're hurting me!" Keitaro pleaded…

Keitaro's screams of pain soon attracted the attention of pretty much everybody, including Ichigo and her friends (minus Retasu), already in their Mew Mew forms since they heard Naru's yelling. "Who are you and what are you trying to do to Urashima-san!" Ichigo asked angrily…

"Tsk… It's those Nyan Nyan girls…" the creepy schoolgirl said as she chose to run away rather than confront the Mew Mews…

"That girl's suspicious… but we've got other matters to take care of right now!" Ichigo said…

However, as soon as he found himself unimpeded, Keitaro ran towards the hospital entrance to meet with Naru…

"Wait! Where are you going?" Ichigo said…

"If you don't come, I'll go in and neuter you on the spot!" Naru shouted towards the hospital. Keitaro didn't show up, so Naru pulled up her sleeves. As she prepared to enter, Keitaro came running out of the hospital's front door. Keitaro tripped on the stair and landed on Naru, his face on Naru's breasts as they both lay on the sidewalk, with him on top of her…

" _You filthy rapist!_ " Naru roared as she punched Keitaro up with all her might, sending him several dozens of meters into the air in front of Retasu's horrified eyes. With his mouth leaving a trail of blood in the air, Keitaro fell from several dozen meters and none of the Hinata Inn women did anything at all to save him. Keitaro landed on his head as he hit the sidewalk with great speed and force, breaking his neck, ribs and limbs, his body turned into a deformed mess as he lay in a pool of his own blood. Shinobu winced as if she had felt the pain of that landing. Retasu couldn't help screaming in horror…

"What are you freaking out about?" Naru said nonchalantly to Retasu…

"Urashima-san… He was _your husband!_ And you just _killed him_ like you don't care!" Retasu cried…

"Just watch…" was Naru's answer…

Retasu witnessed just what horrifying extremes Keitaro's regeneration powers could reach. Keitaro slowly and very painfully squirmed, as his bones got back into place on their own, even those of his neck. " _Waaaah! Nooooo! Please, make it stooooop!_ " Keitaro screamed and cried as his body painfully regenerated from all damage against his will. Shinobu started silently crying…

"See? There's no consequence for punishing my dirty pervert of a husband!" Naru said as she walked over to the screaming and squirming Keitaro and stomped him hard with complete disregard for his well-being, unknowingly making Shinobu cry even more…

"Narusegawa-san, please _stop it!_ " Retasu cried. "How can you be so _sadistic_ towards the man you love?"

But what Retasu said instead angered Naru. "Love? …Did you say _love_? … _I don't love him! I cannot possibly love him! Never in a million years! Even if heaven and earth exchange places, I will never love Keitaro Urashima!_ " Naru screamed with sudden desperation, her face blushing intensely but her eyes filled with despair as if she had something to hide…

"I see…" Retasu said as she looked at Naru in the eyes with complete seriousness. "You _do_ love Urashima-san! However, for some reason you're _extremely_ ashamed of your feelings for him, so you're desperate to hide your feelings at any cost! You're trying to convince the world… no… You're trying to convince _yourself_ that you don't love him!"

" _Don't fuck with me!_ " Naru roared as she tried to kill a defenseless Retasu. But before she could punch her, Leon suddenly burst through the hospital wall and punched Naru's face from the side with his full strength, sending her crashing into a building on the opposite side of the street…

"You undignified bastard!" Motoko said angrily as she unsheathed her real sword. "Such a honorless tactic!"

"Transform, Retasu-chan! I'll hold them off!" Leon said as he prepared to battle the Hinata House women…

"Hey! Don't forget about us!" Ichigo said as she and the rest of the Mew Mews also hopped into the battlefield…

"Outnumbering is even _more_ honorless!" Motoko complained…

"Relax! Don't forget I studied their transformation pendants last time" Su said as she took out a ray gun from her backpack and shot Ichigo with it. The damage was about the same as Leon's stun cannons, but the Mew Mews watched in horror as Ichigo's transformation was shattered and she reverted to human form…

"Wha…? What happened? My powers…!" a shocked Ichigo said…

"Did you really think I'd disassemble and put back together your transformation thingy without studying a way to counter it?" Su said…

Ichigo attempted to kiss her pendant again, but Motoko attacked her with a real katana while she was defenseless. Luckily Leon landed a low blow, more specifically his elbow on Motoko's intestines, before pushing her away with a backhand to the face…

"Judging from her trying to attack you before you could transform, the disabling of your powers isn't permanent. That barefoot bitch over there can cancel your transformation, but she can't prevent you from transforming back without help" Leon told the Mew Mews…

"Okay, you got me there. I give you credit for being smarter than you look" Su told Leon. "…But you can't protect all five of them forever, can you? Especially now that Naru-san is back"

Naru got up with blood in her mouth and a few bruises, but so royally pissed off that a black aura of evil surrounded her body as she walked ominously towards Leon…

"The bitch's right… They're not the ones who are outnumbered. _We_ are! Thanks to a little ray gun, all of my allies have been turned into dead weight!" Leon thought as he examined the entire battlefield, a drop of cold sweat running down his forehead as he found himself confronted with at least three powerful opponents in the form of Naru, Motoko and Su, and that was not counting Mitsune, whose abilities were still unknown to him…

Naru screamed furiously as she lifted an entire car over her head and hurled it at Leon and Retasu. Leon first thought of jumping over the car, but with a defenseless Retasu so near to him and no time for her to transform, Leon could only push Retasu out of the way and let the car hit him…

" _Leon-san!_ " Retasu cried…

Meanwhile Motoko attacked with her sword, which Zakuro had to block with a full-strength attack from her purple fire whip, and was still struggling to completely stop her. When Minto pulled her bow and arrow and tried to help Zakuro, Su zapped her with her de-metamorphose ray, reverting her back to normal. Bu-Ling then attacked Su, both girls demonstrating the same level of agility and dexterity as Su dodged Bu-Ling's attacks…

"Wow! I'm impressed! I finally meet someone who can keep up with me!" Su said happily while dodging…

Leon pushed the car Naru threw on him off himself. Just as Naru tried to crush his head, Leon rolled aside and jumped back to his feet. Naru attacked Leon with her fast martial arts moves. This time Leon fared better, but still struggled trying to maintain his defense against Naru's relentless barrage…

" _Metamorphose!_ " Ichigo, Minto and Retasu shouted as they tried to transform back now that Bu-Ling had Su occupied while Zakuro held off Motoko and Leon battled Naru…

"Aren't you forgetting someone?" Mitsune said mockingly as she appeared amidst their transformations and punched and kicked them all before they could fully transform, reverting them back. "Magical girls are vulnerable during their overly long transformation sequences. I always wondered why nobody attacked them mid-transformation. Chivalry, perhaps?" she said with a shrug…

However, as the situation seemed to turn its most grim, a flurry of bubbles suddenly blew on the entire battlefield, which then burst into a cold and dense mist. All fighting stopped as the shapely silhouette of a woman in sailor fuku with short hair made her presence known…


	22. Kanako's looming shadow

Everyone looked as the recognizable silhouette of a Sailor Senshi walked through the cold dense mist her bubble attack had created…

"That person's ki is really high…" Motoko thought, and then she smiled wide. "I want to battle her!"

Since everyone was in awe, Bu-Ling took the chance to suddenly steal the de-metamorphose ray gun from Su's hand…

"Aah, shoot! Where's that backup gun?" she said as she tried to quickly rummage through her backpack for another one, but Bu-Ling put a hand on the floor to hold herself vertically as she kicked Su in the chin, knocking her down…

"Heh! …Part of my training during these last months has been in complete dark!" Bu-Ling clarified…

Motoko screamed as she tried to attack the silhouette in the mist, but said silhouette wasn't in the mood for a fair fight today. She quickly got down and swipe-kicked Motoko's legs to trip her. Motoko attempted to regain balance, but her opponent moved around her and kicked her on the side, sending her flying. After that, the silhouette immediately went for Naru and knocked her out with a good kick to the face. Mitsune ran away before she could become the next target…

The mist finally scattered as the silhouette's identity as Sailor Mercury was revealed…

"Doctor!" Retasu exclaimed…

"Looks like I made it in time" Sailor Mercury said to her disciple with a smile…

" _Narusegawa-san!_ " Keitaro screamed hysterically as he found his wife lying down knocked out with the bruises of the battle…

"He does love her too…" Retasu thought, seeing the genuine concern for Naru's well-being in Keitaro's eyes…

"Keitaro-senpai… Even after what Naru-senpai has done to you…" Shinobu thought, crying…

However, the creepy orange-haired schoolgirl from before suddenly appeared with a flying kick to Keitaro's head, knocking him out…

"What the…?" Ichigo said…

"It's that creepy girl again!" Minto said…

"The name's Kirino, if you're interested!" the creepy girl said as she posed…

"Chimera Anima!" Masha screamed as he suddenly appeared near Ichigo…

"You're working for them? You've been duped! Killing your boyfriend won't do anything good!" Ichigo said…

"What are you talking about? My beloved brother is just fine!" Kirino replied, and then she transformed into her Chimera Anima form, with the upper half being her own naked body but with octopus-like skin, while the lower half was eight huge octopus tentacles disturbingly reminiscent of what you'd see in hentai works. Kirino had one such tentacle wrapped around Keitaro. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I will take Keitaro-kun back with his loving sister"

With that, the octopus Chimera Anima fled the battle with a screaming Keitaro in tow…

" _Senpai!_ " Shinobu cried…

" _Come back with my Keitaro!_ " Motoko yelled as she got up and went to chase after Kirino…

"Great… _Now_ you've done it! You _idiots_!" Naru said as she got up, still in pain from Sailor Mercury's kick…

"You're blaming _us_?" Leon said angrily…

"Don't you see it? Kanako is behind this!" Naru ranted, unaware that Leon and the Mew Mews did not know her background…

"Kanako?" a surprised Ichigo said as she remembered meeting a woman in the underground tunnels of the inn who introduced herself with the phrase "My name is Kanako Urashima, pleased to meet you"

"Kanako Urashima is Keitaro's incestuous pervert of a sister. I guess sexual perversion runs in their family… She will stop at nothing to have sex with her own brother, no matter who she has to use as her tool to reach her dirty goal" Naru explained as she walked up to Su and shook her to wake her up. "Su! Wake up! One of Kanako's goons kidnapped Keitaro!"

"You _do_ care about him!" Retasu said…

"No. We're just going to slap a bitch for stealing my possession" Naru replied calmly, without the typical tsundere denial mannerism, indicating no hidden feelings of love in that sentence and sounding more like a yandere instead. As soon as Su got up, she and Naru ran after the Chimera Anima too…

"We must go too. I don't believe these two warring factions will care about any innocent people caught in their crossfire" Sailor Mercury told the Mew Mews and Leon…

And indeed people were running away as Motoko didn't care who was in the middle of her attacks. Kirino screamed horribly as one of her huge tentacles got cut like butter by Motoko's sword, spilling blood all over the place. Kirino retaliated by spitting ink on Motoko's eyes to blind her and then slapping her in the face with another tentacle so hard she drove her through a wall. Naru and Su arrived at this point…

"That filthy pervert is _mine_! Give him back!" Naru demanded…

" _Never!_ I saw what you did to him! His sister will instead give him the love you denied him!" Kirino said. "I-I mean… there's really nothing wrong with fucking your own brother" the octopus Chimera Anima admitted with some reluctance as she blushed intensely…

"I see… You work for Kanako because you share her gross fetishes" Naru said with a smirk…

"It's not like you _choose_ who you fall in love with!" Kirino shouted angrily as she blushed. "…Besides, it was thanks to Kanako-san that I obtained this power and was able to force my brother Kyosuke to have sex with me. I have to honor my end of the bargain!"

"So _that_ 's why there were 4 missing parasite aliens at the lab last time I counted" Su said casually and nonchalantly. "I knew I should have installed that death ray defense system at the lab's entrance"

"Enough talk! Kanako-san will be even more pleased when I present your corpses to her!" Kirino said as she tried to crush both Naru and Su with her tentacles…

"Keep quiet" Su nonchalantly said as she pressed a button, causing the parasite alien inside Kirino's chest to explode much in the same way as she did to Sayaka before…

"Kyosuke-oniisan…" was the last thought that crossed Kirino's mind, her chest bursting into a mess of blood, crying and dropping dead with a huge hole in her chest, the image of her brother being the very last vision she had. Without the parasite alien, Kirino's dead body reverted to its human schoolgirl form, still with a big bloody hole in her chest. Leon, the Mew Mews and Sailor Mercury arrived too late…

Naru and Motoko both came to help Keitaro get up, only to immediately start pulling his arms…

"Back off! Keitaro's mine!" Naru yelled, pulling one of Keitaro's arms…

"No way! Keitaro Urashima is mine!" Motoko replied, pulling Keitaro's other arm…

Both girls pulled Keitaro's arms without holding back with their super-strength, painfully breaking and dislodging Keitaro's limbs. They were deaf to Keitaro's screams of pain as they continued to fight over him, further damaging his muscles and starting to literally rip his arms off, blood and all…

" _Stop it_ you two! How can you call _that_ love?" Sailor Mercury shouted at them…

"I don't love him! I just don't want any other woman to have him!" Naru said angrily as she blushed…

"Keitaro Urashima can only have _one_ woman in his life! And that will be me!" Motoko said…

"No, it's going to be _me_!" Naru said as both girls resumed further hurting Keitaro…

Sailor Mercury kicked both girls away from Keitaro. "Such childish way of thinking! You really have nothing better to do with your lives than giving in to your lowest instincts?"

"Hey, girls! We're ready to go!" Mitsune said, holding Shinobu…

" _Maehara-san!_ " Retasu screamed, worried."I won't let you take her away!"

"Silly girl! Shinobu and Keitaro don't have anywhere else to live!" Mitsune replied, shocking Retasu. "They were coming back to the inn eventually. It's just that Naru insisted in stopping Keitaro from sexually abusing somebody, that's the only reason we came all the way here" Mitsune clarified…

Su then called a remote-controlled relatively small airship (with about enough capacity to carry 6 people at most), landing it in the middle of the street with complete disregard for the cars and people below…

"It's not over yet! As soon as we take care of Kanako, you will be next!" Naru threatened before carrying Keitaro into the airship, with the others soon following. The ship quickly took off and they escaped, successfully retrieving Keitaro and Shinobu…

Shinobu soon found herself back at Hinata House, watching helplessly as Naru threw Keitaro back into the cage and locked him in again. Retasu's words echoed in Shinobu's mind: "If you really love Urashima-san, take good care of him. Protect and support him"

"Naru-senpai…" Shinobu said timidly…

"It's alright, Shinobu. You're safe now" Naru said as she placed both hands tenderly on Shinobu's shoulders…

"…Why are you locking Keitaro-senpai in a cage?" Shinobu questioned…

"You're kidding, right? That pervert is always putting his face on our boobs! Walking on us while we're dressing! Diving into the hot springs while we're bathing naked in them!" Naru replied angrily…

"But… What if he just stumbled?" Shinobu asked…

"Don't be ridiculous, Shinobu! Coincidences _that_ contrived don't happen in real life! Keitaro is a dirty rapist! That's the only explanation!" Naru affirmed…

"I don't know, Naru-senpai… What if we're wrong?" Shinobu said, starting to cry…

"Don't say stupid things! We're women! We're never wrong! Especially in front of a man!" Naru said…

Shinobu remained silent as she looked down sadly…

"Come on, girls! Mutsumi is making dinner tonight… If she didn't die again, that is" Mitsune said…

Meanwhile, at the roof of a building somewhere in Kanagawa, Kanako was watching the sunset when a girl with shoulder-length back hair wearing a red sports jacket and really short blue pants approached her…

"What is it, Sugu?" Kanako asked this girl without looking back at her…

"Kirino-san is dead" Sugu informed sadly…

"I see…" Kanako muttered as her face expression became sad as well. "I shouldn't have sent her alone"

"What's going to be our next move, Kanako-san?" Sugu asked…

"We need to increase our ranks. We have to convince someone strong enough to stand up to those harpies to join our cause" Kanako said…

"But where are we going to find someone that strong?" Sugu asked…

Kanako smirked. "I know who we could use…"

That night at the hospital, Andr was awake in his bed, his entire face bandaged and his body connected to machines to keep him alive. He was sending a text message with his cell phone, using his remaining eye to see in-between the bandages…

At the Mew Mew Café's basement, Ryou's cell phone rang. When Ryou checked his message box, he found a message from Andr. When he opened the message, it said "The passwords are N0D0K4 for the right and M4H0R0 for the left. Show this message to Leon"

"What are these passwords for?" Ryou thought, puzzled by this mysterious message…


	23. Matron of Hinata House

By the next morning, Ryou had reunited Leon and the Mew Mews at his secret base under the Mew Mew Café. "I got a text message from Dr. Seto last night…"

"Is he okay?" Ichigo asked…

"He told me to show you this message" Ryou said as he showed the message with the passwords to Leon. "Leon, you must now what these passwords are for"

Leon's eyes opened wide as he stared at the message for several seconds. "Andr must be completely desperate if he's giving me permission to unlock the Buster Cannon"

"The Buster Cannon?" Keiichiro asked…

Leon transformed his right arm into its cannon form, opened a hidden console in it and entered the "N0D0K4" password, then reverted that arm back to a hand and transformed his other arm to cannon, where he opened the other hidden console and entered the "M4H0R0" password…

"Passwords accepted. Buster Cannon unlocked" Leon said in cold machine monotone as his arms lit up and started making the sound of powering up…

"What did you just do?" Ryou asked…

"Normally, my plasma arm cannons are only powerful enough to stun the target via pain without hurting it much, think a taser or a stun gun. This was a security measure taken by Andr to ensure I wouldn't commit an excess with my cyborg powers. The Buster Cannon was protected by a double password and it wouldn't unlock unless both passwords were entered precisely. According to Andr, they are only to be used in case of an extreme emergency… I think our enemies have proven strong enough for him to take this decision" Leon explained, much to everyone's horror…

"Exactly how powerful is the Buster Cannon?" Ryou asked with distrust…

"Enough to turn me into a one-man army" Leon replied…

"Deactivate that weapon _now_! It's too dangerous!" Ryou shouted…

"I can't! Only Andr can lock the Buster Cannon again with a simple command… and since he's authorized me himself, I doubt he wants to take it back" Leon said seriously…

Ryou clenched his teeth, most other people in there put sad faces, only Zakuro remaining stoic. At that moment Dr. Mizuno descended into the base…

"Good morning, everyone" Dr. Mizuno greeted. "I'd like to ask if I could take Retasu-chan and Leon-kun for a couple hours"

Later that day, Dr. Mizuno was driving her car, with Retasu on the passenger seat and Leon at the back…

"Where are we headed, Dr. Mizuno?" Retasu asked…

"We're visiting the house of a certain archeology professor and his family" Dr. Mizuno said…

"What does an archeology professor have to do with the problem at hand?" Leon asked…

"Actually, it's the wife we want to talk to. She used to be the matron of the Legendary Inn before she got married and moved away" Dr. Mizuno explained…

Dr. Mizuno parked her car near a normal Japanese house with an unkempt lawn. She, Retasu and Leon got off the car and walked to the front door to ring the doorbell…

The door opened and they were greeted by a fairly attractive 36-years-old woman smoking a cigarette. "May I help you?" she asked rather nonchalantly…

"Good afternoon. I am Dr. Ami Mizuno. Coming with me are Retasu Midorikawa and Leon. Would you happen to be Haruka Seta?"

"That'd be me, yes" Haruka replied without much enthusiasm…

"May we come in?" Dr. Mizuno asked…

"That depends on what business you have with me" Haruka replied…

"This… might be hard for you to swallow, Mrs. Seta…" Dr. Mizuno said…

"Meh… If I could swallow my husband's you-know-what, I can swallow anything" Haruka joked nonchalantly. Retasu felt grossed out. Leon tried to hold back his laugh…

Dr. Mizuno's facial expression made it clear she did not appreciate the joke. "Mrs. Seta… It's about your family's inn. We… think it may be connected to the recent wave of murders"

"I see…" Haruka said, her eyes saddening a little. "It's a bit of a long story, so come in"

Leon, Retasu and Dr. Mizuno were taken inside the house and sat around the table while Haruka brought them tea and some cookies. Leon was quick to grab a cookie for himself while listening to whatever Haruka had to say…

"I don't know the full details, but everything started a few months ago when my little cousin Keitaro made a discovery during an expedition headed by my husband" Haruka started narrating…

In a flashback sequence, there was an expedition being headed by a middle-aged man wearing glasses who looked a lot like an older Keitaro. The actual Keitaro was in explorer clothes bumbling through some ruins. A lonely parasite alien that had been left there after its alien masters were long gone suddenly latched to Keitaro's face. The poor loser screamed and ran around everywhere like an idiot until Naru punched him on the head so hard she broke Keitaro's neck. Keitaro still had his regeneration powers even back then…

"We brought that strange jellyfish thing back to Hinata House. All of those little girls were fascinated about it" Haruka narrated…

"It'd be a great idea to give it to Su. She could take her to her lab and analyze it. That way we could discover more about it" Mitsune had proposed back then…

"…The next day, Su discovered that thing was some parasite from outer space that could fuse with other living organisms and enhance them. When Naru found out, she saw the chance to finally carry out something that she had been planning for years…" Haruka continued narrating…

"You mean she was planning to create a female-dominated society years before she got the parasite alien?" Retasu asked…

"She's been planning it ever since the man she originally had a crush on left her without any goodbye, 9 years ago, and then he more or less forgot about her" Haruka said…

"That's sad! How mean of him!" Retasu said…

"Not exactly… He is a whole decade older than her and he was _her teacher_. What 16-year-old Naru had was just a juvenile crush, and there was no way he was going to notice her" Haruka clarified…

"So that's why she turned into a feminazi bitch? Sounds a little disproportionate, doesn't it?" Leon said…

Haruka suddenly took out a whip and made it snap right in front of Leon's face, startling him enough to make him fall over with chair and all. "Naru is still dear to me, so I'd be grateful if you didn't use the B word when referring to her" Haruka said before staring nostalgically into the air. "She used to be such a sweet girl before then…"

Retasu helped Leon get up. "She's right, Leon-san. You need to learn to have more tact with people, especially when talking about their close ones"

"Haven't you tried to talk some sense into her?" Dr. Mizuno asked…

"That brat wouldn't listen to me. 9 years ago, Naru Narusegawa closed her heart to all men, and has since been trapped in an eternal crusade to get revenge on every last one of them" Haruka said…

"Unfortunately, knowing the enemy's life story won't tell us how to defeat her" Leon said…

Haruka sighed. "Back when I was young girl, I used to badly beat up the boy who would later down the road become my husband, several times. I'm not gonna lie, I was actually trying to kill him. He had already broken my heart once… Then one day he proposed to marry me, and since then I was unable to bring myself to hurt him anymore" she said, making a pause to smoke her cigarette some more and exhale the smoke towards the open window so as to not bother her visitors. "Unfortunately Naru doesn't seem to relent that easily"

The doorbell rang…

"Geez! Why am I getting so many visits today? Excuse me…" Haruka said as she went to open the door…

"Hi, Haruka!" Kanako greeted happily…

"Well, if it isn't Kanako-chan. Come in! What brings you here?" Haruka said as she invited Kanako in…

"Can't I come to visit my cousin?" Kanako said cheekily as she walked in…

"I happen to have some guests at the moment" Haruka replied…

"Nice! I'd love to meet them!" Kanako said as she quickly walked to the dining table to meet Retasu, Leon and Dr. Mizuno. "Good afternoon! My name is Kanako Urashima. Pleased to meet you"

"I heard your name before. Aren't you that girl who wants to fuck her own brother?" Leon said…

" _Leon-san!_ " Retasu screamed. " _Leon-kun!_ " Dr. Mizuno screamed in unison with Retasu…

"I'm technically adopted, so there is no actual incest to worry about" Kanako said calmly as she took a seat at the table. "Well, since you seem to have already heard about me, I must confess I've heard about you too…"

"What do you want from us?" Dr. Mizuno asked Kanako distrustfully…

"The same as you: to defeat our common enemy" Kanako replied…

"I'm still here, you know?" Haruka said as she passed by the room on her way to the kitchen. "If you guys wreck my grandmother's inn, you will pay for it with your blood" she said so seriously that everybody else in the room winced…

"Oh, no no! She's my grandmother too! I'd never dishonor the family that so kindly took me in when I had nowhere to go… In fact, I'm trying to rescue one of our family members who's being kept in a cage like an animal by those harpies" Kanako said…

"Keitaro Urashima?" Leon asked seriously…

"Exactly" Kanako said with a sly smirk. "My cute and sexy brother Keitaro… You know? The relationship between two siblings is a special one. I don't know how it is in other countries, but here in Japan, an older sibling is seen as the caretaker of the family and is responsible for the upbringing of the younger siblings… Do you guys have siblings of your own?"

"I have a younger brother" Retasu said…

"My big brother taught me a few stuff, but most of the time we were beating each other up" Leon said bitterly. "We haven't talked in years and I frankly don't miss him"

"Yeah… Keitaro promised me we'd run the Hinata Inn together when we grew up, but as things are right now, he's impeded from fulfilling his promise… That's why I need your help. A promise in Japan can _never_ go unfulfilled. That's dishonorable to the person who made the promise as well as to his entire family, and I'm not letting my beloved brother's honor get stained because some dirty harpy says so" Kanako said. "So… What do you say? Would you guys be so kind to help a poor loving sister out?"

Leon, Retasu and Dr. Mizuno looked at each other…

"Maybe she's sincerely on our side… Should we accept?" Retasu whispered to Leon…

"I don't trust this woman. Something feels off about her, but I can't quite put my finger on it…" Leon whispered back to her…

"I'm sorry, but we refuse" Dr. Mizuno said calmly without even discussing it with Retasu and Leon. "We appreciate your offer, but I think we can stop this wave of murders ourselves"

"I see…" Kanako said as she calmly got up from her chair. "It's a pity, as I could have greatly benefitted from your help" She then started walking towards the front door. "I hope you never get to experience the pain of having someone close to you get forcibly taken away from you… Goodbye" And with that, Kanako left Haruka's house…

"Doctor, why did you refuse Urashima-san's help?" Retasu asked her mentor…

"I noticed something funny in her speech… All she talked about was her own motives. She never once mentioned any benefit we could get from allying with her, aside from the vague 'defeat our common enemy', which isn't even our real goal. We're here to stop a wave of murders, not just to defeat some enemy" Dr. Mizuno explained. "My point is this Kanako Urashima lady seems to be a very selfish person. I suspect she doesn't care at all what happens to us as long as she can have her brother back. In other words, she just wants to use us like tools"

"How horrible!" Retasu exclaimed…

"Please don't think our entire family is like that" Haruka said as she brought some cake. "We're a humble family of confectioners who always keep our every promise until the end, for better or for worse. We have our honor, just like every other good Japanese family"

Right after that, a loud crash was heard, followed by an explosion that startled Leon, Retasu and Dr. Mizuno, but Haruka was unfazed…

"My sweetheart's home" Haruka said nonchalantly as she went to open the door. Her guests followed her and saw a wrecked upside-down van in flames with a telephone post having fallen on it. "He didn't get it so bad this time" Haruka said, horrifying her guests…

Then, from inside the wrecked flaming mess of a vehicle emerged the exact same middle-aged man with glasses who had headed the archeology expedition where Keitaro had found the original parasite alien. The man was now bloody and battered, but still nonchalantly walked towards the house where his loving wife awaited for him, not feeling the pain of his wounds at all…

"Sir! Let me treat your wounds!" a worried Dr. Mizuno said as she and everyone else ran towards him…

"I'm fine, thank you very much" calmly said Haruka's husband as he hugged his welcoming wife. "I'm Professor Noriyasu Seta. Pleased to meet you" he then said to Leon, Retasu and Dr. Mizuno…

"Dr. Ami Mizuno" she introduced herself. "With me are my protégé, Retasu Midorikawa, and her partner Leon"

"Hey! I've heard about you! You're that prestigious medic from Heidelberg University!" Professor Seta said happily…

Dr. Mizuno giggled as she felt flattered. "I've heard about you too, Professor Seta. You've made huge contributions to multiple history museums with your findings, not to mention to the science of history in general"

Professor Seta was then taken inside by Haruka…

"I will stay and treat the Professor's wounds. Leon-kun, be a gentleman and escort Retasu-chan back" Dr. Mizuno said. The sun was setting…

"It'll be my pleasure" Leon said, gently taking Retasu's hand. The green-haired beauty blushed as she felt embarrassed and flattered…

Meanwhile, at Hinata House, a 16-years-old blonde girl with blue eyes and a cowgirl outfit, complete with a certain stars-and-stripes motif, arrived through the front entrance door. Similarly to Bu-Ling, her body had developed a lot in the last 7 years, particularly the big breasts to be expected from an American girl…

"Welcome back, Sarah-chan! How was the expedition with Professor Seta?" Mutsumi asked her happily as Motoko helped her with the luggage…

"You mean my field trip with dad? Let's see… Dad found the Holy Grail, then the two of us fought an army of Nazis by ourselves and won, and then we went to some temple where a guy was ripping the beating hearts out of people and freed all of his kid prisoners… Oh! And we survived a nuclear bomb by hiding inside a common fridge! …You know, the usual" Sarah said nonchalantly…


	24. Retasu is captured

The sun was setting in Kanagawa prefecture. Leon and Retasu walked together, holding hands, as they traveled back towards Andr's house. "When was the last time we had some time alone together like this?" Leon asked Retasu…

"That day when we beat that cherry tree Chimera Anima, I think…" Retasu said, and then she blushed and giggled remembering that day. "That day you said you never want to see me being hurt ever again" she said with a sweet smile…

"Yes. Basically a declaration of protection. And yes, I _know_ what that means in Japanese culture" Leon said, blushing as well…

"The phrase 'I'll protect you' is a declaration of devotion and commitment in this country, not just some request to be someone's bodyguard. When said to a woman by a man, it means a chance for the woman to fulfill her role as a woman by being protected, just as our society expects it to be" Retasu explained. "In other words…"

"…It means 'I love you' …" Leon completed the phrase for her as they stopped and looked into each other's eyes. Both of them blushed as their lips were slowly attracted to each other, and the cardiac rhythm of both became faster and faster as they were about to have their first kiss…

" _Retasu! Leon!_ " Ichigo's voice screamed desperately, interrupting them before their lips could meet…

When Retasu and Leon looked towards the source of the voice, they saw a badly battered Ichigo who could barely stand up…

" _Ichigo-san!_ " Retasu screamed as she and Leon came to check up on her. "What happened to you?"

"Those girls from Hinata House ganged up on me! They're headed to the hospital! They're going for my boyfriend next!" Ichigo cried…

"We must contact the others!" Retasu said…

"There's no time!" Ichigo said as she immediately used Leon as her crutch to help herself walk. "We must hurry!"

As Retasu, Leon and Ichigo ran towards the hospital, Kanako's minion Sugu was watching the action from on top of a small building, accompanied by a pair of brunette twins…

"Ako! Riko! We're going to proceed as planned" Sugu said to the twins behind her…

"Understood" the slightly more feminine twin said. "You can trust Riko and me"

"Right, Ako! If they won't cooperate, we'll force them!" the slightly more tomboyish twin replied…

"Let's go" Sugu said and the three moved into action…

"I know a shortcut! Turn left there!" Ichigo said as she pointed to a dark alley. Leon and Retasu went with Ichigo there without thinking…

"Something's amiss… If Aoyama-san were really in danger, Ichigo-san would fight to the death to protect him. She would never leave him, not even to bring back help!" Retasu was thinking as night fell and the alley became too dark to see Leon, who was somehow too far away from her now…

"You're coming with us, miss" Sugu said as she emerged from the darkness in front of Retasu. Ako and Riko came from behind to close her only escape route…

"Who are you?" Retasu said as she took out her Mew Pendant to transform…

"We are sisters who love our brothers dearly and are grateful to our boss for giving us the power to make our wishes come true" Sugu said before she transformed into an insect-like Chimera Anima with a leafy dress, resembling a fairy. Ako and Riko meanwhile transformed into a pair of curvaceous female werewolves, though still retaining human-like face and hair, whose spot patterns in their furs mirrored each other, with Riko having a bigger claw on the right hand, and Ako having the same claw but on the left…

Meanwhile, not too far outside the alley on the other side, Leon looked behind. "Where's Retasu-chan?"

Leon then heard Retasu scream inside the alley…

" _Retasu-chan!_ " he screamed as he tried to go back, but Ichigo was suddenly able to move just fine and blocked Leon's way. "What the fuck, Ichigo?"

"Your girlfriend will be coming with us" Ichigo said with Kanako's voice, and then her bones started repositioning grossly until Kanako reverted back to her true form and chuckled. "If you want her back, call this number and accept to join us" she said while tossing a small white card at Leon. "If you refuse or take too long… well, I'd be sorry for your girl"

Leon replied by firing his arm cannon at her. Kanako could barely dodge, but a small piece of her clothes got torn off and the skin underneath burned a little, making her wince in pain. The bulk of the shot hit a metal pole and left a small hole in it like a real bullet. Kanako was quick to escape…

" _Retasu-chan!_ " Leon screamed as he ran back into the alley, but it was too late. All that was left was one of Retasu's shoes lying on the ground. Leon picked it up, his teeth clenching with rage as his tears overflowed from his eyes. "Retasu-chan… I failed to protect you again…" he cried, and then let out a raging scream that echoed through the night sky…

Poor Retasu had been captured and tied up before she could even transform, walking one-shod into Kanako's hideout, feeling the cold floor under the unprotected sole of her bare foot. She was thrown into a corner by the two wolf girls. The fairy-like insect one then spun some more of the silk Retasu was already tied with to tie up Retasu's beautiful feet together to prevent her from running away…

"What do you want from me?" Retasu asked them…

The three Chimera Anima girls reverted back to human form before replying. "The boss will use you as a bargaining chip to force the cyborg boy and your other friends to cooperate with our cause" Sugu replied…

"What is your cause?" Retasu asked Sugu…

Sugu blushed. "The emotional connection between a brother and a sister is a very close and special one… Isn't it weird that, despite this, we are not allowed to marry our dear brothers?"

"Um… It's not weird. It's actually a natural mechanism to avoid the pairing of certain genes that…" Retasu was about to explain…

"We don't care. Love can transcend even bonds of blood" Sugu interrupted her with creepy seriousness…

"Thanks to Kanako-san giving us powers, Riko and I can force our brother Keita to have sex with both of us every morning" Ako said, blushing with sweetness in her eyes as she thought of her brother…

"And we're thankful for that, so we're helping her spread her vision to all of Japan!" Riko said…

"With enough people supporting our cause, we could rescue Kanako-san's beloved brother Keitaro from the clutches of the Hinata House residents" Sugu finished the explanation…

Retasu decided to shut up. "It's useless. They're too blinded by their beliefs to listen to me" she thought…

"Well explained, Sugu" Kanako said as she entered the room. She walked up to Retasu and looked at her smugly. "Your boyfriend better not attempt a rescue or anything funny like that… or there will be consequences"

" _What?_ Retasu was kidnapped?" Ryou yelled…

"Yes! I apologize for my incompetence, but time is running! I need you to trace a phone number!" Leon said through the comm. device installed in his cyborg body as he was still in the street looking for his missing beloved…

"What the fuck were you doing instead of protecting her? If anything bad happens, I'm holding you responsible!" Ryou said angrily. Leon was too ashamed and sad to reply. "…Alright, give me that phone number" Ryou said more calmly…

Once Leon told him what number it was, Ryou quickly typed into his laptop, looking at a map of the streets of Kanagawa on the screen…

"Is it possible to send coordinates into your system?" Ryou asked…

"Sure! I need all the help I can get!" Leon replied…

Ryou sent Leon the location where the phone number came from. "It's in that place. There seems to be an abandoned clothes shop there"

"Right! I'm on my way!" Leon said. "Hold on, Retasu-chan! I'm coming to you!"

Leon made his way to the abandoned store he was told about. Sailor Mercury just happened to run into the scene at the same time…

"Leon-kun! I heard what happened and came as fast as I could!" Sailor Mercury said…

"Wait! How do I know it's really you?" Leon asked distrustfully…

"What do you mean?" Sailor Mercury said, shocked…

"The enemy has transformation powers. She can disguise herself as anybody" Leon told Sailor Mercury…

"That's bad. We can't even trust each other like this" Sailor Mercury said…

"We don't have time to stand around! They might be hurting Retasu-chan!" Leon said as he rushed in…

"Leon-kun! Don't be reckless!" Sailor Mercury said as she followed…

As soon as they got in, they immediately found poor Retasu bound and gagged against the wall at the far back, still missing one shoe. "Retasu-chan!" Leon said as he immediately rushed towards her. No guards attempted to stop him and no traps were triggered…

"No guards or traps to stop us? This can't be good…" Sailor Mercury thought…

Leon easily set Retasu free and helped her get up. "Oh, Leon-san! I knew you'd come to my rescue…"

"Retasu-chan…" Leon said, sadly looking into Retasu's eyes…

"Leon-san…" Retasu replied as she looked down, with some sadness in her eyes, and hugged Leon. "While I was captured, Kanako-san and her associates told me about their goals… They really only want support to rescue Keitaro-san from his prison at the Hinata Inn" she then looked sweetly into Leon's eyes…

Sailor Mercury suddenly pushed Leon aside and kicked Retasu away. The poor girl rolled on the floor, and then sat up, crying…

" _Retasu-chan!_ " Leon screamed, and then he pointed his now-lethal arm cannon towards Sailor Mercury. " _What the fuck's wrong with you?_ Could it be that you're…?"

"No! _She_ is the enemy, Leon-kun! She transformed into Retasu-chan to fool us!" Sailor Mercury said, pointing at Retasu, who sat there crying cutely…

Leon looked at the poor crying girl, too cute to consider her an enemy, and then prepared to attack Sailor Mercury…

"Leon-kun, _please_! Think about it! She's there in plain sight with nobody guarding her and no traps impeding us from reaching her! It's an obvious trap!" Sailor Mercury said…

"That's unless _you_ are the one to stop me from rescuing her!" Leon said…

Retasu continued to cry, making poor Leon suffer more as he saw her in pain. He finally snapped and started shooting at Sailor Mercury, his plasma shots leaving small holes in the walls and stuff they hit. Sailor Mercury dodged skillfully, and then kicked Leon's arm upwards and pinned him against the wall with her arm on his neck…

"Please! Stop fighting each other!" Retasu pleaded…

"You know Retasu-chan better than this, Leon-kun! She wouldn't just make you suffer by sitting there and crying! She would reassure you that she's okay even if she's not! Trust me! She's been my patient for years!" Sailor Mercury said…

Leon stopped struggling as his eyes opened wide, seeming to realize Sailor Mercury had a point. Retasu then got up like nothing's happened…

"Don't worry, Leon-san. I'm okay. That kick didn't hurt as much as it looked. Please don't be sad" Retasu said, faking a reassuring smile as any woman would do in that situation…

"Well… You've got a point" Leon conceded. "That bitch has to be a fake!" he shouted as he pointed his arm cannon at the fake Retasu, but her using the image of his beloved caused him to hesitate to pull the trigger on her…

"You can't kill me when I look like her, can you?" Kanako said with a smirk before she swiftly attacked Leon, easily kicking him around…

" _Leon-kun!_ " Sailor Mercury screamed as she was about to help him, but then some lights shined outside. About five missiles were fired from outside into the building. Thankfully everyone dodged the blasts, but the building was set on fire…

Mecha-Tamas started floating into the place, and Sarah was riding on the back of a larger one. "It's been a while, Kanako-san…" she said with a smirk, but it soon vanished to be replaced by an expression of confusion as she didn't notice Kanako disguised as Retasu. "Huh? Where's Kanako-san?"

Kanako ran away as soon as she got the chance…

"You're a new one…" Leon said…

"I'm Sarah McDougal" Sarah said with a confident smirk. "You must be that robot boy that's been messing with my friends' plans. But that ends here! You can't beat me!" She then had the Mecha Tamas open fire on Leon and Sailor Mercury, who immediately went for cover…

"We don't fucking have time for this!" Leon screamed…

"I'll hold her off! You try to find Retasu-chan!" Sailor Mercury replied…

"Got it!" Leon said as he left Sailor Mercury to battle Sarah…

Meanwhile, still disguised as Retasu since she didn't have time to reposition her bones, Kanako met with her minions in the room where they had the real Retasu bound and gagged, also naked since her clothes were being worn by Kanako herself for the disguise…

"Kanako-san! What's happening out there?" Sugu asked, worried…

"Those harpies somehow found us! We have to escape!" Kanako replied…

"What do we do with the hostage?" Sugu asked…

"Sugu, you take her as far as possible! As long as we have her, we still have that cyborg tied to our fingers! Ako and Riko, you come with me!" Kanako ordered…

"Hai!" the three of them said in unison. Sugu turned into her Chimera Anima form and wrapped the naked Retasu into a cocoon of her silk, leaving only her face uncovered so she can breathe, and flew out of the back of the burning building, carrying her…

As Kanako and the twins ran out of the back door, however, Bu-Ling arrived to see them. "Girls, I found them! This is the place Ryou said!"

"Darn it!" Kanako muttered…

"I'll hold them off!" Riko said as she assumed her wolf girl form and attacked Bu-Ling, but the monkey girl dodged Riko's claw easily. Ako escaped with Kanako, who still looked like Retasu…

"Quick! They're taking her away!" Bu-Ling urged the others. Ichigo, Minto and Zakuro soon arrived, causing Riko to flee. However, Mitsune and Motoko were already watching them from afar…


	25. The link between true lovers

Kanako, Ako and Riko took refuge in a ruined Shinto shrine hidden deep in the Woods outside Kanagawa. Kanako was back to her true form, massaging her own sore and dirtied foot since she had to run away one-shod while disguised as Retasu. The one shoe she had on during the escape was left at the entrance with the twins' shoes…

"Kanako-san? Are you alright?" Ako asked, worried for her leader…

"That girl's form is uncomfortable to my bones" Kanako complained…

"But how did they find us?" Riko asked…

"That's what I'd like to know" Kanako replied…

The shrine's entrance door got suddenly sliced open as Motoko cut it with her wooden sword, letting Mitsune walk in…

"Come on! You thought we wouldn't figure it out after you tried to steal Keitaro from us so many times?" Mitsune said with a smirk. "We eventually started watching your every move. And of course, a clothes shop would be the perfect place for you to help your ability as a master of disguise. An overall predictable move, in my opinion"

"You sly vixen…" Kanako said, clenching her teeth…

"Keitaro _must_ be with Naru. That's how things are meant to be. Sorry, Kanako, but you're the third wheel here" Mitsune said…

"Kanako-san! Leave this to us!" Riko said as she and her sister prepared to fight off the threat…

Kanako jumped through the window and ran away without hesitation…

"Heh… She didn't even worry about us…" Ako said…

"I know… But we wouldn't have accomplished our dream of having sex with Keita-oniisan without her" Riko said…

"Yes… A favor is a favor and we'll be eternally grateful for it" Ako said, and then both twins transformed into their wolf-like Chimera Anima forms…

"They're all yours, Motoko" Mitsune said as she walked away nonchalantly…

Both wolf twins attacked in tandem, only for Motoko to slash once with her wooden katana. In a single slash Motoko cut down both Ako and Riko, causing blood to burst from the wounds of both. The cut was so deep that both girls quickly bled to death on the shrine's floor, causing their Parasite Aliens to abandon their bodies and their corpses to return to human form. Motoko just walked out of the shrine without any remorse whatsoever for her action…

Still barefoot and wearing Retasu's sleeveless shirt and long skirt, Kanako was desperately running away through the woods…

"Where do you think you're going, Kanako? You can't escape" Mitsune's voice said somewhere between the endless labyrinth of trees. "You can't separate Keitaro from Naru. I can't let that happen, no matter what" she added calmly…

Kanako stopped running. "You know that harpy never loved Keitaro! She only projects her own faults onto my dear brother and then punishes him for it!"

"What's wrong with her doing that? It's what humans do all the time, isn't it?" Mitsune said…

"Well, you're not the only one who's learned sensitive information" Kanako replied with a smirk. The hiding Mitsune's confident smirk suddenly disappeared from her face. "That's right, Kitsune… Don't think I didn't know about who Naru truly loved… and how, 9 years ago, a certain somebody manipulated her and her beloved teacher to drift apart, ultimately breaking Naru's heart… and then Naru's subsequent engagement and marriage to Keitaro. Yes, I know who was pulling the strings behind all of those contrived events…"

Mitsune briefly opened her eyes for about half a second, showing a strange yellow glow and a slit pupil, before she went back to her normal relaxed expression and closed happy eyes…

"It's a pity you won't be able to relay that information to anybody. Your minions are dead, and the cyborg boy has his sights set in killing you after you kidnapped his girlfriend… And believe me, he _will_ find you" Mitsune said, and then she giggled and disappeared into the darkness of the woods at night…

Meanwhile, Retasu was still trapped inside Sugu's cocoon. Sugu, now back to human form, had taken her into a cave, lit only by a small campfire Sugu made…

"Where am I? …I… can't see anything without my glasses… It's cold…" Retasu said…

Sugu stared longingly towards the cave's entrance. "Kanako-san hasn't come yet…" she thought, worried…

Leon desperately ran through the dark woods, tirelessly searching for his beloved Retasu. Suddenly, he almost bumped into Mitsune, if not for the fact they both jumped back as soon as they saw each other. Leon aimed his arm cannon at Mitsune…

"Relax, Rockman! I was looking for you to help you out!" Mitsune said…

" _I don't trust you!_ " Leon screamed…

"Whatever. If you're going to let your girlfriend die…" Mitsune said, turning around 90 degrees and putting both hands on the back of her head like she didn't care. "…A short distance north of here is a small shrine, and there's a cave near it. Your enemy must be headed there. Do me a favor and rid me of her"

And then Mitsune quickly ran into the woods and disappeared…

"Shrine at the north… That's the only clue I have" Leon thought, and promptly ran towards the north…

Soon enough, he stumbled upon an old small shrine dedicated to a fox deity. He saw Retasu standing there barefoot, waiting for him, her feet dirtied by the mud of the forest floor. Leon approached her distrustfully, with his right arm still turned into a cannon…

"Leon-san… They let me go" she said, but the look in Leon's eyes continued to be cold towards her. "I'm sorry to have caused you so much trouble. I'm alright. Let's go home"

Leon stared silently and coldly at her. However, she noticed his left fist clenched and trembling. He clearly wasn't as cold as he looked…

"It's alright, Leon-san. We won. I'm safe now" she said, hugging Leon…

"I don't understand…" Leon said…

"What's there to understand, Leon-san?" she asked…

"All this bloodshed… all this death and sadness… just for _one guy_?" Leon asked sadly…

"Love is an unstoppable force. It transcends space, time and bonds of blood. True lovers are connected by a link that cannot be broken no matter what" she said…

"Bullshit, I don't believe in magic" Leon stated…

"You don't love me, Leon-san?" she asked sadly…

Leon winced with emotional pain. "I love Retasu-chan more than anybody else in the entire world… And even though she's against it, I would kill for her"

"Then you _do_ understand…" she said with a little happy smile…

"But it's not the same thing. Retasu-chan is an exceptional person. She's polite, generous, tries to solve things peacefully when she can… I might say she's brave, even… But Keitaro Urashima, the man that all of you are shedding so much blood for… he's just _trash_ " Leon said…

" _How dare you?_ " she said with anger uncharacteristic of Retasu. "Keitaro is even _more_ polite, gentle and generous than your silly girlfriend! He can take all sorts of horrible abuse but he's _so_ kind he will never bite back! Keitaro always does his best to make others happy without caring for his own situation! He's literally _the nicest man in the world!_ " She then started crying rather sincerely…

"Would you please go back to your true form?" Leon asked Kanako…

Kanako giggled, still with some tears on her face. "Nice try… But as long as I have the form of your girlfriend, you can't hurt me!" she gloated…

Without a word Leon punched Kanako in the face so hard he knocked her down and Retasu's glasses fell off her face, miraculously intact. Leon picked them up. "These belong to Retasu-chan" he jokingly pointed out the obvious…

Kanako got back up and started repositioning her bones back to her true form…

"I was unaware of how gross shape-shifting powers look in real life until now…" Leon commented with disgust while storing Retasu's glasses safely in his pocket…

"If you won't help me rescue my brother, then I'm afraid I will have to kill you" Kanako said as she got into fighting stance…

"The sad thing is… I _would_ have helped you, if only you had approached us differently. I don't care about you having incest sex. It's _your_ family that gets fucked, not mine. Not my problem… But you literally have nothing else in your head than fucking your brother! Nothing else matters to you! Where are your minions now? Did you sacrifice all your pawns already?"

Kanako let out an evil laugh. "What's wrong with being selfish? You're only fighting because of your girlfriend and nothing else! You're no different!"

"Wrong. Retasu-chan isn't the only thing in my brain! I aspire to become a videogame designer someday! And I also have friends like Andr, for whom I try to be there when they need me! The problem that you and the girls of the Hinata House have is that you all _live only to fuck_!" Leon retorted…

"Marrying a submissive man that we can dominate and that will love us and _only us_ is the ultimate dream of every woman!" Kanako reaffirmed before attacking Leon…

Leon used what he learned from Sailor Mercury to parry Kanako's swift punches and kicks, being forced to retreat as he tried to find an opening for a counterattack. Before that happened, Leon received a kick to the face with Kanako's bare dirty foot. He managed to lay his hand on the forest's muddy floor and backflip back to his feet, with mud on his face from the kick, as well as blood from his mouth…

Leon started shooting at Kanako with his arm cannon, but Kanako predicted his move and started running around to dodge the shots and trying to nail another kick on him from an angle. Leon was barely able to block Kanako's kick with his arm, but when he tried to fire back at her, she moved aside and attacked with melee again, as the cannon was less effective at short range…

While he was taking a beating from Kanako, Leon briefly flashed back to his training with Sailor Mercury…

"So, the defending one always wins?" Leon had asked…

"Not always. If you still want to go on the offensive, you will have to break your opponent's defense before he breaks yours" Sailor Mercury had replied…

Leon understood he couldn't stay on the defensive forever and started throwing fast punches. "When you're in the offensive, you want to disrupt your opponent's defense by attacking quicker than he or she can defend. The strength of your blows doesn't matter" Sailor Mercury's lesson echoed in Leon's mind as he attacked…

Kanako's defense was no slouch. Leon had trouble creating a proper opening, but another thing Sailor Mercury told him before flashed back to his mind: "The capabilities of the cyborg body that Dr. Seto gave you are far beyond what pretty much any human could do"

Leon let out a scream as he started attacking faster and faster, using the speed that was only possible thanks to his machine body. Eventually he created an opening in Kanako's defense, while remembering another part of his training…

"The only moment you want to send a full-strength punch or kick is when you've created the proper opening for it in your opponent's defense"

With another scream Leon sent one slower, stronger punch, landing it on Kanako's chest and sending her flying with such force she went through about five trees, chopping them down in the process. Leon breathed heavily, surprised at how Sailor Mercury's teachings had improved his fighting skills so much. But it was no moment to celebrate. Kanako slowly got up, wounded, bleeding but more willing than ever to win the battle no matter what…

With a furious scream Kanako charged at Leon and started giving him a relentless beating of fast yet powerful blows. She managed to knock Leon down, landing with his face on the mud, and then she stepped with her dirty bare foot on his head. "I wonder if cyborgs still need to breathe" she said mockingly before letting out a mad evil laugh…

Leon transformed his right arm to a cannon and started firing it upwards several times in a desperate rapid-fire before he would drown in the mud. One such shot grazed Kanako's leg and caused her a painful burn. She backed off from Leon, giving the battered and dirty cyborg a chance to get up. His glowing red eyes gave Kanako a death glare…

Both of them screamed and charged at each other, exchanging blows. It seemed like Kanako was winning, but Leon noticed her attacks getting slightly slower. Then, a final lesson flashed back to him: "Since you're a cyborg and thus part-machine, you won't get tired. You could take advantage of that in long battles and wait for your opponent to wear out before turning the tables on him or her"

Leon finally took advantage of this fact and combined it with his cyborg speed to break Kanako's defense. When he finally got a window to attack, he transformed his right arm into a cannon, punched Kanako in the stomach with the mouth of the cannon and then fired. The plasma shot came out of Kanako's back as a ray of white light, spurting blood from the hole it created…

Kanako stepped back, coughing up blood, and then she finally fell back and collapsed. "Good job… cyborg boy…"

Leon grabbed Kanako by the shirt, glaring angrily into her eyes. "Where is Retasu-chan?"

"Sugu must have… taken her to the nearby cave… but… before you go…" Kanako said…

"What?" Leon asked impatiently…

"Mitsune Konno… that vixen… she's behind everything…" Kanako whispered with the last of her strength. "Nine years ago… she manipulated Naru… and her teacher that she was in love with… Professor Seta…" she revealed, to Leon's surprise. "She had them drift apart… and broke Naru's heart… then… she put my dear brother Keitaro in her way…"

"…Why?" a shocked and puzzled Leon asked. " _Why_ would that vixen do that?"

"I… I don't know… My brother… he's been cursed with immortality…please save him… even if you have to…" Kanako said as she tried to reach for Leon with her hand, but then she coughed up blood. Kanako quickly bled to death…

Leon slowly let go of Kanako's corpse with an expression in his eyes that mixed confusion and guilt. "I have no time for this" he said as he started running. He soon arrived at the cave near the shrine. " _Retasu-chan!_ "

Sugu gasped as she suddenly stood up. "W-Where's Kanako-san? …Did she…?"

"She's dead" Leon replied somberly and somewhat sadly…

"That… can't be…" a shocked Sugu said, falling on her knees and starting to sob…

"There's no longer a point in keeping Retasu-chan hostage now, is it? …Set her free, _now_!" Leon said seriously…

Sugu stayed silent and did nothing but sob for a few seconds…

"Alright…" Sugu finally conceded…


	26. Pushing onwards

As Leon waited outside the cave, Sugu in her Chimera Anima form improvised a simple dress made with her insect silk so that Retasu shouldn't have to go around naked. Leon had also given Retasu's glasses to Sugu so she could give them back to her…

The sun was rising and the birds started chirping. Leon sat by the cave entrance, sadly looking downwards at the grass. Then, he saw Retasu's beautiful bare feet walking on said grass and standing in front of him…

"Leon-san…" Retasu said sweetly…

Leon looked upwards. Barefoot Retasu in a white silk dress bathed by the morning sunlight was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life. He shed tears of joy…

Retasu kneeled down in front of him and gently caressed his face. "You kept your promise, Leon-san…" she said happily, starting to shed tears of joy as well. Leon hugged her tightly and cried…

"Leon-san! I'm okay! Don't worry about me!" Retasu said with a smile to reassure him, just as Sailor Mercury had told him she would…

Ichigo and the other Mew Mews, as well as Sailor Mercury, arrived to find this heartwarming scene. It looked like a happy ending out of a romance movie, making them all happy, though some were better at hiding it than others. Ichigo was the one squealing like a shipper fangirl at how cute it looked…

The next thing they did was bury Kanako's body. Leon, Retasu, Sailor Mercury, the other Mew Mews and Sugu were present there, and they did a minute of silence for her…

Ryou and Keiichiro brought two separate vehicles to pick them all up and bring them back home. Leon still looked depressed…

"What's wrong, Leon-san?" Retasu asked…

"I'm no hero… I failed to protect you, and on top of that I broke the promise I made to you" Leon said…

"…Nobody is a hero, Leon-san" Retasu said. "We're all vulnerable one way or another, and we're bound to make mistakes despite our best efforts"

"Yeah…" Leon replied…

Meanwhile Mitsune and Motoko were walking back towards the Hinata Inn, with Motoko going ahead, looking upset…

"We've finally gotten rid of that annoying master of disguise. Nothing can separate Keitaro and Naru now" Mitsune said…

Motoko turned around and pointed her wooden sword threateningly at Mitsune's face…

"Hey! Calm down!" Mitsune said, stepping back…

"I'm only into this for Keitaro's good. Remember, I will someday kill Naru and steal Keitaro for myself" Motoko said seriously…

"If you kill his wife, Keitaro will hate you" Mitsune reminded her…

Motoko winced from the emotional pain. " _I know that!_ " she yelled as she swung her wooden sword. Mitsune rolled to the side to avoid the cut, but a dozen trees were chopped in a single slash…

"Hey, girls!" Su said happily as she and Sarah arrived. Each one was holding a container with one Parasite Alien inside. "We recovered the Parasite Aliens from the twins"

"Good job" Mitsune said as she stood up…

"Yeah, but… You know, _four_ parasites were missing from the lab! One I destroyed, other two we recovered…" Su said as she counted them with her toes…

"That means one of Kanako's underlings is still alive. We'll take care of her later" Mitsune said…

Our heroes all finally arrived at the Mew Mew Café, letting Retasu take a shower and put on some new clothes later…

" _No!_ I refuse!" Sugu said. Ichigo was still in her Mew Mew form, holding her weapons…

"There's no refusing this, Miss Sugu!" Ryou replied harshly. "We won't allow you to go around with an alien parasite inside you!"

"It's thanks to this thing that I was able to force my beloved brother Kazuto to have sex with me! If I'm lucky, the pregnancy test will give a positive!" Sugu said, horrifying everyone in the room except for Leon, who leaned with his back on the wall and his arms folded…

"Just let the girl do whatever she wants. _She_ 's fucking up her own life, it's none of our business" Leon said…

"Negative! She's still a dangerous Chimera Anima and _must_ be purified!" Ryou replied…

"Shirogane-san?" Dr. Mizuno said as she entered the café. "The patient is ready"

"I'll be back in a couple hours. Ichigo, get that girl purified as soon as possible!" Ryou ordered before leaving with Dr. Mizuno…

"Did you bring the cybernetics the patient requested?" Dr. Mizuno asked while she drove her car towards the hospital, with Ryou on the passenger seat beside her…

"One of Leon's spare eyeballs and a cybernetic ear part that went unused during his reconstruction because Leon's original ears were mostly fine" Ryou replied…

"About how much of Leon-kun's body do you think is machine?" Dr. Mizuno asked…

"60%, more or less" Ryou answered…

"I thought so… That train almost completely destroyed him. I can't believe Dr. Seto was able to rebuild him from there, much less at such a short age" Dr. Mizuno said…

"I've never installed cybernetics into a human before" Ryou said, worried…

"I had to learn a lot of things by simply doing them. It was harder than I expected, but I eventually got where I am now. I need your help because of your expertise with machines" Dr. Mizuno said…

They finally arrived at the Kanagawa hospital and dressed for surgery. On the operating table inside the surgery room was Andr, anaesthetized as he waited for his face to be fully reconstructed after his incident with Shinobu…

At Hinata House, Su and Sarah cuddled Shinobu and tried to cheer her up…

"Well, Naru-san? What are we going to do now?" Mutsumi asked before she took a bite off a slice of watermelon…

"With Kanako out of the way and those Nyan Nyan girls rendered helpless by Su, our only worries now are that cyborg boy and that old heroine from the past" Naru replied…

"What do you plan to do about them?" Mutsumi asked…

"I can easily crush the cyborg myself, but the Sailor Senshi is a tough one" Naru answered…

"Maybe it's time to deploy our secret weapon" Mitsune said. The mention of said secret weapon somehow both angered Naru and saddened Shinobu at the same time…

" _What? No way!_ I don't trust _him_!" Naru yelled angrily…

"Aw, come on! He would do _anything_ for you!" Mitsune said. "After all, he is tied by the promise he made to you" she added in a more sinister tone…

Hearing that made Shinobu even sadder. As for Keitaro, he back into his cage, sitting quietly and hugging his knees…

" _All_ men are perverts!" Naru said angrily…

"I know, I know. That's why you're going to take over the world in the first place, right? Naru, you are the chosen one that will lead women into a new golden age and put all of those perverts under our feet!" Mitsune said…

"I know that! Of course I'm going to take over the world and make it a better place for every woman!" Naru exclaimed with determination "...That way nobody will ever have to experience what I had to go through" she added a bit more sadly…

"That's right, Naru. Men see us as nothing but objects. As soon as they find a prettier lady, they'll throw you away without a second thought" Mitsune said, still smiling calmly and talking casually as if it were no big deal…

Hearing Mitsune say that, Naru's mind immediately went to Professor Seta. Naru remembered the loneliness she felt when he disappeared from her life without any goodbye, and how betrayed she felt when she met him again, only to find he had completely forgotten about her…

"I'm going to put them all in their place… I will reduce men to mere objects, just like they always do to us!" Naru exclaimed, clenching her fist with rage…

Shinobu flashed back to that day when she almost killed Andr. "That's wrong, Senpai… What we're doing is wrong! Countless people are going to die if we continue like this!" Shinobu thought to herself, unable to voice that opinion when each and every one of her comrades was in favor of Naru's plan. She started crying…

"Shinobu-chan, why are you crying?" Su asked her…

" _Grrrr! Keitaro made Shinobu cry again!_ " Naru roared, even though Keitaro wasn't even in the room. She nevertheless went to the underground path to give him another beating…

Not long after that, Shinobu was bathing alone in the hot spring, unable to stop crying…

" _Bombs away!_ " Sarah shouted as she and Su came running and jumped into the hot spring, splashing the hot water everywhere. Shinobu was mysteriously not bothered…

But Su and Sarah's heads didn't pop out of the water just yet. They swam under the hot spring water and started tickling Shinobu's gorgeous feet. " _Ahahahahahahahah!_ " Shinobu laughed loudly and happily. Even though so many years had passed, she still enjoyed getting her feet gently tickled…

The tickles soon stopped and then Su and Sarah emerged beside Shinobu. "Feel better now?" Su asked Shinobu…

"…A little" Shinobu replied…

"A little is not enough! We want our friend to be happy!" Sarah said…

"If there's anything we can do for you, don't hesitate to ask! Seriously, _anything!_ Want a banana? I got plenty of them! Want to fly to the moon? I got rocket fuel ready! Want a puppy? I'm working on a ray gun that turns people into puppies right now!" Su said…

Shinobu blushed as she thought of her wish. "… I just… I just want to be able to talk to Andr-kun once again… Tell him how terribly sorry I am for nearly killing him… He lost an eye and an ear because I smacked him in the head with my frying pan so hard!" she cried…

"Cool! Way to go, Shinobu-chan!" Sarah congratulated her…

"Yeah! You really understood Naru's teachings! You will be like her in no time, a proud crusader of feminism!" Su said happily…

" _I don't want to be that!_ " Shinobu cried, then covered her face with her hands and started weeping. "That's not the way to treat the person you're in love with! You're supposed to care for him, protect him and support him! I hurt Andr-kun and now…"

Shinobu couldn't even complete the sentence. Su and Sarah looked at each other seriously and nodded…

"Shinobu-chan… We'll bring that boy back to you" Su said seriously…

"You will?" Shinobu asked, surprised, with her face still soaked by her tears…

"Of course! We had never seen you care so much about anybody other than Keitaro before! That Andr guy must be _really_ important to you!" Sarah said…

Shinobu blushed and looked down "Well… not _that_ much… Andr-kun was my friend during childhood, before Keitaro-senpai came into the picture…"

"It's decided! We're reuniting you with him!" Su said…

"Girls… Thank you" Shinobu said, moved…


	27. The conquest of Kanagawa

Next morning, at the Mew Mew café, the Mew Mews and Leon were listening to Dr. Mizuno…

"The operation was a success. With Shirogane-san's help we were able to reconstruct Dr. Seto's face and implant a new cybernetic eye and ear for him to replace the ones he lost" Dr. Mizuno said…

Ichigo, Minto and Bu-Ling happily smiled at the good news, while Retasu sighed in relief…

"But Doctor, why are you carrying that luggage?" Retasu then asked…

"I'm going back to Tokyo" Dr. Mizuno replied, much to everyone's surprise…

"But we might still need your help!" Ichigo said…

"I know. I will try to contact Usagi-san and the others and tell them everything I found out here. Hopefully I can come back with some extra help before things get out of hand" Dr. Mizuno said…

"Oh… Alright then" Ichigo said, nodding. "Send my regards to Usagi-oneesan"

"Don't worry, I will" Dr. Mizuno replied with a smile, and then she turned around and started to walk away, but stopped at the door. "Oh…Leon-kun…"

"What is it?" Leon asked…

"Even though I taught you how to fight, you can't solve every problem by punching it in the face. No matter how strong you are, often your strength alone won't be enough. Your greatest resource is not your strength, but your mind… That's all. I just wanted to give you one last advice before I left. Goodbye" Dr. Mizuno said…

Meanwhile, in the underground base below the café, Ryou was checking out some data on his laptop…

"What are you doing, Ryou?" Keiichiro asked…

"Just going through the Mew Mew files" Ryou replied as he scrolled through. "Mew #07: Beri Shirayuki, with the DNA of the Amami Black Rabbit and the Andes Mountain Cat… Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to mix the DNA of two species"

"She's Ichigo's cousin, right?" Keiichiro asked…

"I'd rather forget about her. Moving on…" Ryou replied with apathy. "Mew #06: Ringo Akai, with the DNA of the Humboldt Penguin, although technically not infused, but able to transform thanks to a pendant of Mew Aqua and the DNA of her pet penguin, Yuki"

"We haven't seen Ringo-chan in a while. I hope she's doing well" Keiichiro said…

"Her healing abilities would have come in handy here" Ryou said. "Mew #05: Zakuro Fujiwara, with the DNA of the Grey Wolf. Our strongest warrior other than Ichigo"

"Yeah. She may look very cold on the outside, but is secretly a team player" Keiichiro said with a happy smile…

"Mew #04: Bu-Ling Huang, with the DNA of the Golden Lion Tamarin… which is a monkey" Ryou said…

"The youngest of the group. She has noticeably grown up since then" Keiichiro said…

"And she's become more skilled too, since with age comes wisdom" Ryou replied. "Mew #03: Retasu Midorikawa, with the DNA of the Finless Porpoise…"

"I'm happy that Retasu-chan finally found love. Remember when she had a crush on you, Ryou?" Keiichiro said…

"She took it surprisingly well when I turned her down, which is a relief because I did _not_ mean to hurt her feelings" Ryou said…

"Who can blame you? You have your own girlfriend to take care of" Keiichiro said…

"Mew #02: Minto Aizawa, with the DNA of the Blue Lorikeet" Ryou said…

"She's actually very empathetic despite the snobbish and self-centered image she usually gives out" Keiichiro said…

"Yeah, but good luck getting her to actually do her work as a waitress" Ryou replied. "Mew #01: Ichigo Momomiya, with the DNA of the Iriomote Wild Cat. We finally get to our main heroine…"

"Our first successful experiment, not to mention the central piece of most of our operations" Keiichiro said…

"Saving the world wouldn't have been possible without her. We owe her our lives… but don't tell her I said that!" Ryou said…

Keiichiro laughed "Oh, Ryou. You don't need to act like a tsundere towards her"

"I know, but it's fun" Ryou replied with a little smile…

Ryou then scrolled one more space, to one more file. He frowned at the sight…

"What's wrong, Ryou?" Keiichiro asked…

"Mew #00?" Ryou said. "What's this, Keiichiro?"

Keiichiro got closer to look at the screen. "Oh! That girl… Well, she was our very first human volunteer for the Mew Project, back when I was your father's lab assistant"

"Interesting… What happened to her?" Ryou asked…

"Well… at first she seemed stable enough… Then she started acting weird… We soon found out the DNA of the Red Japanese Fox that we used was overtaking her human DNA. Before we could do much, she turned fully into a fox and ran away. We never found her again" Keiichiro said…

"It's a very delicate balance. Infuse somebody with too little animal DNA and it won't work. Infuse him or her with too much, and he or she will fully turn into the animal in question, like when I turned into a full cat for a while" Ryou said…

"Even thought I told you not to, you still would rather test the formula on yourself first than put others at risk… You had me worried back then" Keiichiro said sadly…

"Ichigo herself has a bit too much of the wild cat DNA, to the point that she has a hard time fully controlling her transformation. Only a little more of the animal DNA and she could have ended up like #00 …speaking of this girl, what's become of her?" Ryou said…

"That's what I'd like to know…" Keiichiro said sadly. "She was about my age"

A while later, Ryou and Keiichiro went back up where the Mew Mews were waiting for them. "I take it Dr. Mizuno has already left…" Ryou said…

"Yes. She will try to locate her friends and bring them here to help" Ichigo said…

"Wow. The famous Sailor Senshi reunited once more, and just to help _us_ … This incident sure has escalated" Keiichiro said…

"Anyway, we're finished modifying your Mew Pendants. Now you won't be affected by that de-metamorphose ray anymore" Ryou said as he handed each of the five Mew Mews her corresponding pendant…

"Where is Mr. Leon?" Keiichiro asked…

"He just left to visit Dr. Seto at the hospital" Retasu replied…

Meanwhile, in Andr's room in said hospital, Leon was standing beside Andr's bed as he updated him on the current situation…

"I see… Good job killing that shape-shifting bitch. That's one monster down" Andr said with uncharacteristic coldness. His face was still bandaged, but his left eye glowed with the same red light as Leon's eyes, and his left ear had been replaced with a headphone-like device with an antenna…

"She also revealed some information upon death… It's Mitsune Konno. That woman is behind everything: Professor Seta's disappearance, Naru Narusegawa's heartbreak and her meeting Keitaro Urashima. Naru Narusegawa's entire plan of creating a world-wide Amazonian society is a product of that vixen's manipulations" Leon said…

"Why didn't I suspect it sooner? I should have known" Andr said…

"It took me by surprise too" Leon replied…

"Leon… I have a mission for you…" Andr said somberly…

"I'm listening" Leon replied…

"The residents of Hinata House… Kill them all… Every last one of them. That is your mission" Andr said, completely emotionless…

Leon's eyes widened in surprise, it was the first time he had seen Andr be this ruthless…

"What do you think I gave you the passwords to your Buster Cannon for? …This is it, Leon. I finally understood what you used to tell me… That I'm too kind, that evil people won't stop unless you kill them, that I shouldn't pity my enemies… That's why I'm giving you permission to use lethal force" Andr said…

"Shinobu Maehara too?" Leon asked…

Andr stayed silent for a few seconds. "…Yes"

Leon's eyes saddened a little. "…Understood"

Meanwhile, at a random residence in Kanagawa, one woman was getting ready to go out. "Where are you going?" the woman's husband asked distrustfully…

"There's going to be a concert at the Legendary Inn. It's a women's band, so I don't think you'll be interested" the wife replied nonchalantly…

But before she could go out, the man grabbed her by the arm. "You think you can go anywhere whenever you please?"

"Let go of me!" The wife screamed…

"Silence! You've been quite rebellious lately!" the husband shouted back…

"I have a life too, you know?" the woman said defiantly as she abruptly pulled her arm out of her husband's grasp…

The husband slapped his wife in response. " _You're a woman!_ It is your role as such to be silent and obey your husband!"

The wife started crying. " _Fuck you!_ " she screamed as she ran away from home…

" _Come back here!_ " the husband demanded…

The abused woman ran away as fast as she could, and once she was far enough from home, she stopped and took her hand to her chest. She had a Parasite Alien inside her, and soon enough she started walking towards Hinata House with determined eyes…

Leon walked out of the hospital, only to notice an abnormally high quantity of females walking towards the same direction. As he walked back to the Mew Mew Café, he encountered the same thing in every street…

"Isn't that Legendary Brothel in that direction?" Leon thought with surprise in his eyes…

At the same time, the little old woman that Retasu had met when she had first arrived in Kanagawa was watching this exodus of women through her window. "So, it has begun…"

Leon hurried and entered the Mew Mew Café. The main room was empty, as well as the kitchen. Leon found the Mew Mews and their bosses in the underground hideout. "There's something weird going on at the streets!"

"We know" Ryou replied, watching a map on his computer screen, showing several dots all heading towards the location of Hinata House and converging there…

"You probably heard the rumor of a supposed 'girls-only concert' happening at the Legendary Inn. It is said that everybody who bought one of the 'lucky charms' at the teahouse gets a free pass" Keiichiro said…

"The enemy is gathering its army" Ryou revealed, to Leon and the Mew Mews' shock…

"Are there really _that_ many women dissatisfied with their relationships in this city?" a very worried Retasu asked…

"Considering the population of millions in Kanagawa prefecture, the second most populated city of Japan, 10,000 women joining the rebellion is a relatively small number, but it's still a worrying cipher…" Ryou said. "…This is the beginning of a war"


	28. Imminent war

"A war of the genders… What a horrible thing!" Retasu exclaimed sadly…

"Yeah! Do people in this city even know what love is?" Ichigo said angrily…

"Well, men practically _asked_ for it!" said Leon…

The Mew Mews looked at Leon, most of them with shock on their faces, with only Zakuro retaining a calm expression, though even she was slightly disturbed…

"From what I can gather, gender equality never truly existed. Women have always been oppressed under men's fist one way or another. It was only a matter of time before they'd go on a full-blown independence war" Leon explained his point…

"Leon-san… What are you saying?" Retasu said, genuinely confused…

"I don't understand what you're talking about, but it sounds like a bunch of lies!" Ichigo said…

"You sound very disappointed at your own gender" Ryou finally offered a rational reply…

"Don't get me wrong, I don't think highly of women either. What I'm saying is that this is a punishment that humanity has brought upon itself, so why try to save it?"

"So, you're back to _that_ mindset, huh?" Ichigo said…

"Leon-san! Didn't you learn anything from that time?" Retasu asked…

"Retasu-chan… The people we're about to try to protect are the same people that made the monsters angry to begin with. This is a case where both sides are equally as evil and despicable! No matter which side we support, it's a loss! This kind of situation is where being a hero of justice doesn't do shit… And once you grow up, you discover that pretty much every war is more or less like this" Leon said, leaving the Mew Mews with a metaphorical bitter taste in their mouths…

"So, you're suggesting that we just sit and watch the carnage unfold, right?" Ryou said calmly…

"Unless you want to shield the original abusers from their deserved karma…" Leon said…

" _That's_ where you're wrong!" Ryou said. "No matter how badly abused you've been, that doesn't give you or anyone the right to take a life! Those abusive husbands and bastard boyfriends can get a proper punishment later. We're first going to focus on saving as many lives as possible! That includes turning the Chimera Anima back to normal too. We have the right powers to defeat our opponents without killing them! Right, girls?"

"Well said, Ryou!" Ichigo replied while doing a thumbs-up and winking an eye…

"But will you be able to cure the grudges between men and women?" Leon asked seriously…

"That's not our problem. If they're mature enough, they'll discuss their problems peacefully after this incident is over. We're only going to save lives and nothing more" Ryou replied…

"I see… Well, I don't think a living weapon like me is going to be of much use if we're going to just save lives" Leon said, turning around and starting to leave…

"Not so fast…" Ryou said, causing Leon to stop and listen. "I have a task for you in this operation…"

A few hours later, Kanako's former minion Sugu was walking through the now-deserted streets of Kanagawa. Without most of the women and girls, the city was creepily quiet…

"Sugu-san!" she heard a voice calling her name behind her…

Sugu abruptly turned around and prepared to fight, but calmed down when she saw it was only Retasu. "What do you want?"

"You ran off before Ichigo-san could extract the Parasite Alien from you…" Retasu said…

"I already told you! I don't want to be 'cured'!" Sugu replied…

"But _why_?" Retasu asked…

"…Because first I want to avenge Kanako-san" Sugu said sadly…

"Sugu-san, please don't! Revenge never leads to anything good!" Retasu pleaded…

"Those Hinata House harpies set up Kanako-san to die! You can lecture me all you want, but I wouldn't have accomplished my dream without her help and I'm going to repay her!" Sugu said, and then she turned into her insect-like Chimera Anima form and flew away…

"Sugu-san! Wait!" Retasu shouted…

But no matter how much Retasu ran after her, Sugu's flying was much faster. Soon, from the sky, Sugu noticed Su walking into the front garden of the Seta family's house…

"It's one of those harpies… But what's she doing there?" Sugu thought to herself, and descended gently and quietly near the house to investigate, while turning back to human form to draw less attention to herself…

"Hi, professor!" Su greeted happily…

"Su-chan! Come in, I was waiting for you" Professor Seta said as he happily let Su into the house and closed the door afterwards…

Sugu jumped the fence and silently approached the window to see what was going on inside…

"We're almost finished preparing for the attack on the city" Su happily informed Seta…

"Excellent. Are all the cloned Parasite Aliens already implanted in their appropriate hosts?" Seta asked…

"Yes, professor! We even recovered three of the four that were stolen from us! The only one unaccounted for is the one in that one surviving minion of Kanako's" Su replied, causing a chill to run down Sugu's spine as she continued to spy on them and overhear their conversation…

"It's alright. Just one Chimera Anima won't make a difference seeing we have over ten thousand of them under our command" Seta commented nonchalantly…

"Professor Seta is with the Hinata House harpies! He's on their side!" a horrified Sugu thought to herself…

Seta then unraveled a map of Kanagawa prefecture over the dining table and grabbed a pencil. "We're going to attack these key locations here, here and… here" he said as he drew some circles over specific buildings, one of them being the hospital. "And we're also going to block these evacuation routes" he added as he drew some crosses at the routes that were to be cut…

Sugu tried to slowly back away undetected, only to accidentally knock over the nearby rake, making enough noise to alert Seta and Su of her presence. The two rushed to the window, but saw nobody…

"I'll go check outside" Seta said as he calmly walked to the exit door and out of the house…

Seta had only walked a few steps outside when Sugu ambushed him in her insect-like Chimera Anima form. Rather than her usual silk attack, she flapped her wings with so much speed and force she shot a wind attack at Seta, causing an explosion of dust and a thunderous sound…

Seta jumped out of the dust cloud, unharmed and with a serious look in his eyes. He was able to jump all the way to the height where Sugu was floating, an impressive 4 meters, and knocked her out of the air with a single punch to the face. The chimera anima reverted back to human form as she started to run away, her mouth bleeding and her face swollen on the side Seta punched her…

At a mere block of distance from Seta's house Sugu bumped into Retasu…

"Sugu-san! What happened to your face?" a shocked Retasu asked…

" _Professor Seta! He's working with them!_ " Sugu screamed desperately, but her chest suddenly exploded before she could say anything more. Su was a few steps behind her, and had pressed the button to cause the parasite inside Sugu to self-destruct, killing her…

Retasu's clothes were soaked in Sugu's blood as well as some of her insides sticking to her and spilled on the floor. Severely traumatized, Retasu let out a horror scream as she started to cry and fell to her knees…

Su calmly walked up to the traumatized Retasu, still smiling as if nothing bad had happened. "What's wrong? An experienced fighter like you can't stand seeing blood? …How weak! You have to get stronger than that, or else men will dominate you! …Well, you don't seem to be able to fight, so I won't need to kill you. See you later!"

And with that, the barefoot dark-skinned mad scientist walked away, leaving poor Retasu to cry her heart out over Sugu's corpse…

"Retasu-chan!" Leon screamed from the distance as he started running towards her. "I looked for you all over the city! Ryou says you have to get ready to…"

But once he got close enough, a horrified Leon witnessed the broken mess her beloved had become from one minute to the next, soaked with the blood of the friend that had been murdered right in front of her, kneeling by her corpse with a traumatized look and crying…

"That's it! That's the last straw!" Leon said furiously as he clenched his right fist, which trembled with anger…

Few hours after that, more than ten thousand unhappy wives and girlfriends had gathered at Hinata House. Even the city's policewomen had joined in to Naru's cause! Inside the place, Naru and her accomplices were discussing the strategy with the map that Seta marked for them on the table…

" _I refuse!_ " Naru screamed furiously…

"What's wrong, Naru?" Mitsune asked calmly…

" _Why_ does Mutsumi get to fight against the cyborg?" Naru asked angrily…

"Because he was the one who killed Kanako. The cyborg boy is now equipped with a lethal weapon, and he won't hesitate to shoot you with it. That's why Mutsumi is perfect for this job" Mitsune explained…

"I don't care! I'm not letting her fight alongside him!" Naru said…

"What's wrong with letting Mutsumi work together with our secret weapon?" Mitsune asked calmly but with a little provoking smile…

Naru blushed and hesitated to reply. "Because… It's for her safety!"

"I'll be fine, Naru-san. Please don't worry about me" Mutsumi said happily…

"I request to go in Mutsumi-san's place" Motoko said seriously…

"Nice try! But nobody's getting close to him except me!" Naru argued…

"Stop screaming! You're making Shinobu-chan cry!" Sarah said as she was trying to comfort a crying Shinobu…

"Mitsune-chan is right" said Seta as he calmly walked into the room…

Upon seeing Professor Seta, both Naru and Mitsune blushed intensely and their hearts started beating faster…

"B-But Sensei…" Naru said cutely…

"I know it's hard, Naru-chan" Seta said, laying his hand supportively on Naru's shoulder. "But it's a small sacrifice to make for the success of our mission. You want to create a world where women are no longer subject to men's perverted lust, right?"

Naru submissively nodded…

Seta then walked up to Mitsune. The manipulative fox woman, who is usually in control of things, had suddenly lost that cunning expression of hers. Seta's mere presence in front of her had turned her helpless, timidly looking away as she blushed hard…

"You girls just keep it up. You're doing great. Today is Kanagawa, tomorrow maybe the entire Kanto province, and then maybe all of Japan after that. The sky is the limit" Seta said to everyone in the room before starting to walk away. Mitsune and Naru both looked sad…

"You two still haven't completely moved on, have you?" Mutsumi said…

"Shut up…" Naru said with calm anger and a disappointed look in her face…

Meanwhile, the Mew Mews, still missing Retasu, were talking with Ryou and Keiichiro about their battle plan…

" _Ten thousand?_ …No! It's impossible! We _can't_ possibly beat that many Chimera Anima! There are just five of us!" Ichigo exclaimed…

Ryou took a deep breath. "I know… That's why I'm giving you authorization to use our ultimate weapon"

The Mew Mews all widened their eyes in shock. "You mean…" Ichigo asked…

"Yes" Ryou said seriously…

At Hinata House, Naru finally came out onto a stage, a little nervous as she was about to deliver her rousing speech to her army of monster women. The other girls of the house were standing at her sides, missing only Shinobu…

"Sisters! …We have gathered here today because we've been abused long enough! We've been subjected to groping! Panty-thieving! Perverts walking into our rooms while we're dressing! Perverts walking into us at the bathroom and the hot springs! …Today… _we are going to fight back!_ " Naru said…

The army of over ten thousand unhappy women cheered fiercely for their leader…

"From this day forward, we stop being sex objects! We are no longer there just to feed the lustful fantasies of creepy perverts! Today _we_ take command of society! Today _we fight for our independence!_ " Naru shouted…

As the minutes passed and the war was imminent, the Mew Mews were at their base, receiving new weapons from Ryou…

"In these last five years, Keiichiro and I have been working on gathering and refining all of our Mew Aqua reserves into more powerful Mew Aqua crystals, in case of a potential threat big enough that would require drastic measures" Ryou said. "To be honest, I feel bad for using it to suppress the rising of an extremist feminist movement, but they have crossed the line too far"

Retasu looked down, the bangs of her beautiful green hair casting a shadow over her eyes. She hadn't said a word since Leon brought her back, worrying the cyborg more…

"Seriously, though. What has the world come to? Why, after nearly averting destruction from an alien invasion, must humans fight each other? …Girls, you _can't_ let this nonsense continue any further! You _must_ stop this madness before more people die!" Ryou said…

Ichigo nodded seriously. "Leave it to us!"

Each of the five Mew Mews kissed her Mew Pendant and did her transformation sequence…

"Go to your positions as planned! The future of the world rests on your shoulders!" Ryou said…

The girls all moved out, Retasu was the last to go, but stopped briefly by the door to look back at Leon before parting…

"What about me?" Leon asked…

"You're coming with us" Ryou replied…

"I've already spread the evacuation message under the pretense of a supposed natural disaster. We must meet with the people as soon as possible" Keiichiro said…

"While the girls fight the monsters, you're going to clear an evacuation path for the city's population. Yours is the most important task of all, so don't blow it" Ryou said…

"Right" Leon said, nodding seriously…

Meanwhile, at Hinata House, Naru was finally concluding her speech…

"Now, let's go in there and show them who's got the pants on in this house!" Naru said. And with that, her army of monster women movilized…


	29. Evacuation

On that evening, Kanagawa prefecture started to get overrun by unhappy women willingly infected with the cloned Parasite Aliens, transforming into various different animal-like female monsters to conduct mass-slaughter on the city's inhabitants. Motoko, Su and Sarah joined into the carnage as well, each leading a squad of monster women…

People were getting gruesomely murdered all over the place, slashed, impaled, torn apart, crushed, and even _eaten_! Men got slaughtered without even being given a chance to defend themselves…

" _Please stop! I'm happy with my husband! Please don't kill him!_ " one woman who was not angry at her husband cried…

" _Traitor! You're on the side of men! Die with them!_ " was the answer she got from the monster girl who promptly killed her and her husband…

Motoko slaughtered several people at once with a single slash of her wooden sword mixed with enough of her ki. Those who didn't get cut were instead crushed by the buildings Motoko's slash destroyed…

Sarah, meanwhile, rode on a large Mecha-Tama as she conjured pottery out of thin air and threw it onto people's heads. If the blunt impact of the pottery to the head was not enough to kill them, the pieces of broken ceramics cutting through people's skulls would kill them for sure…

Speaking of the Mecha-Tamas, their machine guns, laser guns and missiles were ripping through more of the innocent inhabitants, Su calmly and happily walked in-between this massacre, steadily making her way towards the hospital while humming a cheerful song to herself. She was wearing a device on her wrist…

From atop the hill where the Hinata House was located, Naru was watching the carnage unfold, the buildings collapsing and catching fire, her army advancing as it slowly conquered and destroyed everything that got in its way. Naru's face turned to a psycho expression as she watched her dream of a female-dominated society come to fruition, and let out a mad laugh…

Meanwhile, another good part of the population had made it to the evacuation route, where Ryou, Keiichiro and Leon awaited them…

"Listen, everybody! We're going to calmly go through this route and evacuate the city! Make sure all of your close ones are present and stay together" Ryou told them…

Leon was astonished as he observed the presence of so many women and children among the crowd of people he was about to clear a path for. Given the nature of the attack, this indicated the presence of innocent men who did in fact keep their wives happy…

Ryou pointed at Leon as he continued talking. "This is a special combat cyborg built by Dr. Aleksandr Seto! He will clear a path for us and protect us from the attackers! Let's go!"

Leon's facial expression was indicative of the epiphany he was going through. "Ryou… I finally understood what you said to me earlier…" he told Ryou as he passed him by…

"Less talking and more working!" Ryou replied…

Leon then got moving, making sure to shoot with both of his arm cannons at any Mecha-Tamas or other threats before they could attack the caravan of people that Ryou and Keiichiro were guiding, including having to destroy missiles mid-trajectory…

"You're not continuing any farther!" Ichigo shouted at the army of monsters before her, Mew Aqua Rod in hand…

"What can a sissy kitty girl in a pink dress do?" one of the monster women mocked Ichigo…

" _Ribbon: Aqua Drops Cleansing Rain!_ " Ichigo shouted, rose into the air in a swirl of light and spread millions of blue bubbly energy droplets, generating a massive area-of-effect spell capable purifying dozens of Chimera Anima in one shot, pure enough that the parasites were cleansed to nothingness and the monsters reverted back to powerless humans. Still, just purifying few dozen Chimera Anima did not faze an army of over ten thousand…

The other Mew Mews, with similar weapons, had been placed in strategic locations in order to spread the same rain of Mew Aqua Drops with the largest possible coverage…

But things were only bound to get worse. The evacuating people that were being guided by Ryou and Keiichiro, with Leon protecting them, had come across a two-people roadblock in their escape route. One of said people was Mutsumi, but Leon was more shocked about the _other_ enemy he was about to battle…

"I'm sorry, but I can't let any of you go any further" Keitaro said politely…

However, Leon suddenly put on a wide evil smile…

"You look pretty excited to see I'm your enemy…" a surprised Keitaro pointed out…

"I've hated you since day one…" Leon said. "…I'm happy that _I finally get to crush you!_ " he then screamed as he carelessly lunged towards Keitaro, planning to crush his head with his fist…

"That's too bad…" Keitaro replied, suspiciously calm…

Keitaro barely moved his head enough to have the surprised Leon's fist pass by his side, then he grabbed Leon's arm and put him into a deadlock before slamming the cyborg into the pavement, hard enough to cause him to vomit some blood. Now Leon was genuinely shocked…

"Do not mistake kindness for weakness" Keitaro said. "Just because I let people use me as a punching bag doesn't mean I can't deliver a beating when it's necessary"

" _Fuck you!_ " Leon screamed in response as he turned his right arm into a cannon and fired several shots at Keitaro from the floor, before swiftly getting up and jumping away from him…

Keitaro moaned in pain as his wounds from the shots quickly healed themselves until he was good as new. The people witnessing the battle in the front rows of evacuees were horrified at this supernatural occurrence…

"I'm sorry, but such a weak attack won't kill me. I'm afraid you will have to try a little harder" Keitaro said without the slightest hint of anger. Leon, on the other hand, was already pissed off…

Meanwhile, Su was already at the hospital, calmly walking through a hallway on the second floor with a happy smile on her face, while the carnage and destruction outside continued to rage. "Let's see… Room number 235… Oh, there it is!"

Inside his room at the hospital, Andr watched in horror through the window as the army of monster women advanced relentlessly, taking the life of anyone unfortunate enough to be on their path. Meanwhile with a small device Su easily picked the lock and opened the door to the room where Andr was. Andr abruptly turned around, but before he could even react, Su lunged at him and easily knocked him out…

"I got him" Su said through a communicator…

"Roger! I'm picking him up!" Sarah replied before she momentarily left her position and quickly flew to the hospital window…

Su pushed the unconscious Andr out the window, where Sarah received him…

"Stash him in a cell at the police station for now. We'll come back for him after our mission ends" Su told Sarah…

With that, Sarah took Andr away, but when Su turned around she saw Retasu standing at the room's entrance, glaring at her angrily…

"Oh! You actually came to the battle? I thought you'd be too traumatized to fight" Su said nonchalantly…

Without a word Retasu tackled Su, and both girls fell through the window. Su activated the device on her wrist to call another large Mecha-Tama to catch her. Retasu was able to rebalance herself in mid-air and land harmlessly on her feet…

"Hey! What's your problem?" Su shouted angrily…

Retasu started crying. "How? … _How_ can you be so ruthless?"

"What are you talking about?" Su asked…

"I'm talking about Sugu-san, of course!" Retasu shouted…

"Sugu?" Su said, scratching her head. Her name really didn't ring a bell to her…

"The girl you murdered in cold blood today!" Retasu cried…

"Ooooooh!" Su said, finally understanding. "Still angry about that?"

"How can there exist people that care so little about human life?" Retasu cried angrily…

"Wrong! I _do_ care about human life. If I had let that monster loose, she'd have hurt my friends. I can't have that, you know" Su explained casually, her eyes not showing any remorse or sadness at all…

"Still… You could have talked her out of it, but you chose the violent solution" Retasu cried…

"Aw, come on! Is _that_ what you're so distraught about? Don't you superheroes slay monsters every day?" Su said…

Retasu shook her head. "The Tokyo Mew Mew have never killed anyone! We use our powers to cure others from alien parasite infections! _We save lives!_ "

"Well, that's disappointing. In Hinata House, we say 'Punish the Wicked!' …That's our belief" Su said…

Retasu looked down sadly. "I thought you could be reasoned with…" she said, and then she materialized her battle castanets and got into fighting stance, looking at Su's eyes. "Forgive me, but I will have to punish you!"

Meanwhile, Zakuro purified another several dozen Chimera Anima with her own Mew Aqua Rod. One of the women in that group turned out to be a policewoman, and she wouldn't give up as easily as the rest. She took out her gun to shoot Zakuro…

Perfectly aware of the woman's intentions, Zakuro immediately rushed at her with incredible speed and broke the woman's arm, coldly and without hesitation, to make her unable to use the gun, leaving her in pain but otherwise alive…

"Why aren't you finishing off your opponents?" Motoko asked with seriousness as she calmly walked into the scene…

"The Tokyo Mew Mew have our own code of honor" Zakuro replied coldly…

"Fair enough" Motoko admitted before unsheathing her real katana. "We must battle now. The one whose belief is true shall win"

Zakuro took out her microphone-shaped weapon, source of her flame whip. "You're out of your mind if you consider fighting for your life a sport. You will regret it if you don't take life seriously"

With that, both women attacked with all their strength, causing a big shockwave as their weapons clashed. Sarah quickly came back to the battlefield after hiding Andr and resumed summoning pots from thin air to throw at people from atop her large Mecha-Tama, only to be thrown off the mechanical turtle's back by a flying kick from Bu-Ling…

"I will be your opponent!" Bu-Ling exclaimed as she got into her monkey-like martial arts fighting stance…

"Go ahead and make my day, monkey girl!" Sarah replied boastfully as she got into her own Jeet-Kun-Do stance…

Leon was getting his ass handed to him. The affable and seemingly harmless Mutsumi was proving even faster and more skilled than Naru at Jeet-Kun-Do, easily knocking the cyborg down…

"That was amazing, Otohime-san!" Keitaro happily congratulated Mutsumi, sincerely amazed…

"Thanks, Kei-kun" Mutsumi replied happily…

"Your jolly attitude towards this battle only makes this more _insulting_!" Leon growled as he got up with some difficulty…

"Oh! We're sorry!" Mutsumi apologized respectfully as she bowed. "If you want, we can take this battle more seriously"

" _Stop making fun of me!_ " Leon roared as he shot Mutsumi six times with his Buster Cannon. The woman dropped dead, bleeding from the mouth and with her eyes white…

" _Otohime-san!_ " Keitaro screamed as he went to check on her…

"And you're next!" Leon boasted as he aimed for Keitaro's head…

"I'm okay…" Mutsumi muttered, and then she got up, slowly but effortlessly, in front of the eyes of a surprised Leon and the horrified crowd of evacuees. She didn't seem to be feeling any pain whatsoever…

"Oh, good. It was just your body acting up" Keitaro said, relieved…

Mutsumi giggled. "Kei-kun, you know I died 10 years ago. He can't kill what's already dead" she said with a happy smile…

"Even the undead are part of your ranks! You guys are truly hellspawn!" Leon said, still in shock…

"You're wrong" Keitaro replied calmly. "We're not demons. We're fighting for the greater good"

" _Greater good my ass!_ " Leon screamed furiously as he shot Keitaro again and then, while Keitaro was still reeling, he charged and started punching him. " _Look at all the people dying left and right! How can you say this shit is for the greater good?_ " he yelled madly as he continued to punch Keitaro until one last punch sent him crashing against the wall…

Keitaro slowly got up, painfully regenerating from all the received damage, soon finding himself good as new. "Narusegawa-san will create a better world for all of the poor women abused by this patriarchal regime. Women will rule the world starting today!"

"Do you realize that you're a guy and the implications such a new order has on you?" Leon asked seriously…

"Heh… I swore commitment to my beloved wife anyway, so it will make no difference to me!" Keitaro replied as he went back to battle stance…

" _Just because you're a masochist doesn't mean you have to subject the entire world to it!_ " Leon yelled furiously…

"Look, I'm not a masochist. If anything, we're trying to help the world move forward" Keitaro replied calmly, and then his eyes went slightly sad. "From all the digs I have done with Professor Seta, nothing has been more common a find than battlefields. Places where battles were fought by men being commanded by male rulers!"

"And you think women are more prone to peaceful solutions? Just _look_ at this scenery! _Look_ around you, at all the devastation and death that the bitch you call _your wife_ has caused!" Leon screamed furiously…

In response, Keitaro charged at Leon so fast he didn't see it coming, and punched him in the stomach hard, causing him to bend over and vomit blood yet again…

"You can insult me, beat me to a pulp, treat me like trash, I don't mind… But _never_ use the B-word to refer to my wife" Keitaro said with sudden creepy seriousness, then moved his fist away from Leon's stomach and let him catch his breath. Leon fell to his knees…

"That's all you have in your head? …That's everything that matters to you? As long as your wife is fine you don't care about anything else?" Leon asked, still in pain but retaining a defiant attitude…

"Why, _yes_! Of course! Is there anything more important in life than your one true love?" Keitaro replied…

Leon slowly got up with difficulty and chuckled softly in pain. "What an irony…" he said, and then he went back to battle stance. "I've just realized that you're empty on the inside"

"What?" a confused Keitaro said…

"You heard me! I'm not going to be beaten by an empty husk of a man!" Leon declared boldly with an evil-looking grin, though still bleeding from the mouth…

"So, I'm empty…" Keitaro muttered, and then he cracked his knuckles. "Fine. Let's settle this"


	30. What we fight for

The war raged on through the streets of Kanagawa prefecture. It was on the hands of the Tokyo Mew Mew to use the Mew Aqua to purify the thousands of Chimera Anima and turn them back into normal powerless women and girls, while Leon, Ryou and Keiichiro handled the evacuation of the citizens…

Retasu and Su had already started their battle, with Retasu using her speed and agility to dodge the missiles fired by the large Mecha-Tama that Su was riding. At one point Su had the robotic turtle fire several missiles at once, which seemed to have hit Retasu but the cloud of smoke and dust was too dense to see it…

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu screamed from inside the cloud of smoke and dust, firing a blast of high-pressure water when Su didn't expect it and knocking her clean out of her mount. The girl managed to land on her feet due to not being floating very high. The smoke and dust cleared out to show Retasu dirtied and bruised, actually having taken damage from the missile barrage…

"Agh… I didn't expect you to hit _this_ hard. You've earned my respect as an opponent" Su said with a smile, but closing an eye and holding her chest in pain. "Let's get this fight full swing, shall we?"

Su then pressed another button in the device on her wrist. The large Mecha Tama she had brought with her showed transformer capabilities, turning into a mecha suit and allowing Su to do an entire transformation sequence to get into the mechanical armor…

"Heh heh! Kitsune was right! You were too chivalrous to attack me during the transformation sequence! I should thank you for that!" Su said…

"I was raised to be polite… Something that you and most of your friends don't seem to be" Retasu replied…

"Alright! Let's get on with it!" Su said, and then she transformed her mecha suit's right arm into a familiar-looking arm cannon…

"That's…!" a shocked Retasu thought before receiving a plasma shot that left a small bleeding wound on her body…

Meanwhile, Leon was still fighting Keitaro. It seemed like a hopeless battle for him as Keitaro's greater experience at martial arts and superior speed granted him an unfair advantage, so unfair in fact that Keitaro himself decided to stop punishing him…

"I don't want to continue hurting you, kid. Give up" Keitaro said with some concern…

"I can't…" Leon replied…

"Is it your love for Midorikawa-san? I understand you…" Keitaro said…

But Leon broke into a loud laughter, interrupting Keitaro. " _That_ 's the irony I was talking about! It just happens to _not_ be the case this time!"

"This time?" Mutsumi asked…

Leon looked seriously at Keitaro's eyes. "I had an epiphany today… Don't get me wrong, I've always had more in my mind than just Retasu-chan! …But ever since I met her, I've been trying to impress her. I fought for her cause because of my desire for her, similar to you with your wife! …But _this_ battle is different! Look at all these people! Look at all these men, women and children here! Today I realized what the Tokyo Mew Mew's cause is _truly_ about! Today I'm not fighting just for Retasu-chan! _All of these people depend on me!_ "

"Easy there! You're making me look like a bad guy!" Keitaro complained…

Leon attacked Keitaro, which Keitaro blocked. "What is it that _you_ fight for?" Leon shouted…

Keitaro continued to block and parry Leon's attacks as he stepped back. "I fight for my wife and her ideals!" Keitaro replied…

"Is _that_ all?" Leon said as he threw a hard punch that grazed Keitaro's face, leaving a small cut that quickly healed on its own…

Then Keitaro grabbed Leon by the arm and threw him against the wall. "Like I said, there's nothing more important than your one true love! The woman who will be your companion for life is everything!"

Leon slowly and painfully got up. "Really? There's nothing else in your life? Why did you go to university, then?"

"To find my true love, of course! Legend says that if a couple manages to enter Tokyo University together, they'll be together forever!" Keitaro replied with enthusiasm…

"So, to you, a university is nothing but a place to hook up… _Shallow as a swimming pool for 3-year-olds!_ " Leon said. "See? _That_ 's why you're empty! You're a frivolous man with no other goal in life than to _fuck_! No wonder your wife calls you a pervert!"

Keitaro's fingers twitched, his eyes opened wide, in shock. "But… but I came to university looking for _love_! Not sex! I'm _not a pervert!_ " Keitaro replied nervously…

"What? Do your family and friends not give you enough love?" Leon said…

"Y-Yeah, they do, but… But the love of _a girl_ …!" Keitaro attempted to justify himself…

"There's only one type of guy that looks for a woman's love so desperately. I know it all too well, being one myself… It's no use trying to hide it, you're horny. _Very_ horny! The difference is that you've let your lust overtake you. Maybe the reason Andr passed the entrance exam on his first try and you flunked repeatedly was because Andr focused on his studies in order to achieve his dream of being a robotics scientist, while you probably spent the entire exam thinking of _Narusegawa-san's pussy_!" Leon yelled at Keitaro…

" _That's not true!_ " Keitaro screamed as he broke in tears…

"That's enough! I'm your opponent now!" Mutsumi said, showing anger for the first time as she stepped in Keitaro's defense and prepared to fight Leon…

Meanwhile, Retasu was forced to flee for cover, as Su continued to launch missiles, lasers and Buster Cannon shots at her…

"That mech is too strong to fight it head-on! I have to come up with a better strategy!" Retasu thought to herself…

Su fired another missile. Retasu had to run away as the piece of building she was using for cover got blown up. She was running awkwardly, holding the wound that Su inflicted on her with the Buster Cannon…

"What's the matter? Not having fun?" Su taunted as she fired a couple lasers…

Retasu dodged the lasers and shot a blast of high-pressure water, which did absolutely nothing to Su's mecha suit…

"Forget it! This baby is waterproof!" Su gloated…

"She's right. I can't damage her machine with water because it's hermetically sealed…" Retasu thought to herself as she continued to run away, unable to properly fight back. "I need to somehow create an opening…"

Retasu's escape was suddenly blocked by a couple dozen Chimera Animas of the enemy army, but like her other allies Retasu had been given a Mew Aqua Rod of her own, which she swung at them, releasing a massive flurry of bubbles to depower them all. However, behind that were coming the Mecha-Tamas. Retasu jumped to the side and rolled behind the debris for cover to avoid the missiles and lasers. At that moment, she witnessed the Mecha-Tamas' laser cut clean through a metal beam…

"That's it!" Retasu thought…

Meanwhile, Mutsumi tried to use her martial arts moves on Leon, but the cyborg was having none of that and just shot her repeatedly with his arm cannon, causing her to flinch…

" _Mutsumi-san!_ " Keitaro screamed…

"How about you? Why are you fighting this war?" Leon asked Mutsumi seriously…

Mutsumi stood up straight before going into battle stance once more, no amount of plasma bullets would kill a woman who was already long dead. "I support my good friends Kei-kun and Naru-san unconditionally. Is that wrong?" Mutsumi replied with a smirk…

"So, if your friends one day decide to launch an atomic bomb and kill millions of innocent people, you support them… Though what you're doing here isn't much different" Leon said…

"Suppose that Midorikawa-san one day wanted to do something evil. You'd support her too, wouldn't you?" Mutsumi retorted…

"Because love makes you blind? Perhaps… But then Andr would make me realize my mistake and put me back on the path of good to save me from the consequences" Leon replied…

"Andr? …You mean Dr. Seto?" Mutsumi asked…

"Many times I let the powers of this cyborg body go to my head, and every time Andr had to do difficult stuff to keep the police or government from permanently disposing of me… That's one of the many things true friends do. When you start walking the path of evil, you'll make the entire world your enemy, and you're going to lose since you can't take on the entire planet. A true friend is there to pull you back into the light and save you from destroying yourself! Not to further encourage you down the dark path and hasten your demise!" Leon answered…

"That would be sensible… _If_ my friends were to lose! We are the ones who have the upper hand here! We greatly outnumber you! Your Mew Mew friends aren't going to last long against this many opponents, and every second you waste, our Chimera Anima approach your evacuees from behind as we talk!" Mutsumi revealed as the monster women were indeed walking the evacuation route and slowly approaching the evacuees…

"Damn…" Leon nervously whispered, clenching his teeth…

"Sure! I would stop my friends if their current path would lead to their destruction, but right now they're getting nothing but success! I'm not going to stop them from getting that!" Mutsumi reaffirmed…

"What if I told you that you _are_ going to lose this war?" Leon said with a smirk, slowly raising his right arm cannon from behind his body. It was accumulating energy into its tip, much to Mutsumi and Keitaro's shock. "You're a great fighter, but you get distracted easily. While I was keeping you waiting around listening to the bullshit I was saying, I was charging up energy for my ultimate attack! …You know? It's not very practical because it takes so long, especially against a quick opponent like you…"

"Then I just have to beat you up before you complete it!" Mutsumi said as she charged at Leon…

"It's already done…" Leon said, and then aimed at Mutsumi. Keitaro was horrified. " _Charged Buster Cannon!_ " Leon shouted…

From Leon's arm cannon came out a plasma bullet far larger than usual, coming straight at Mutsumi. The girl screamed, as not even being undead would save her from a blast this powerful. That's where Keitaro quickly got up and ran in front of Mutsumi, receiving the full impact himself. There was an explosion…

Everyone watching the battle was astonished. By the time the smoke cleared, Keitaro was missing a large chunk of his body, crying and squirming in pain as it slowly regenerated, but the damage was too much to regenerate it all instantly…

" _Kei-kun!_ " Mutsumi cried hysterically as she kneeled down beside him…

"See? …You didn't stop your friends from walking the dark path, and that's how he ended up…" Leon said. "That's how _all_ of you will end up unless you stop this madness!" he then yelled…

Mutsumi picked up what remained of Keitaro and ran away with great agility, fleeing the battlefield…

"Go, all of you! I'll take care of the monsters behind you!" Leon shouted to the evacuees…

And soon enough, right after they all crossed to safety, a few dozen Chimera Anima soon appeared chasing after them. Leon stood on their way, but he wasn't in good shape…

"I acted all tough in front of those people… But the truth is I'm almost out of energy from releasing the Charged Buster shot…" Leon thought to himself, breathing heavily…

Luckily for him, a flurry of Mew Aqua bubbles took care of the Chimera Anima for him…

"How arrogant of you, thinking you could take them all on by yourself!" Minto, who had launched that attack, scolded him. She looked pretty battered from all the fighting…

" _You_ , of all people, shouldn't be the one telling me that!" Leon replied…

"Just shut up, sit down and take a rest. We're almost done here" Minto said before she returned to the battlefield…

Sarah had trouble getting up. She was badly battered from the beat-up she received. " _Why_ can't I beat you?"

Bu-Ling swung her Mew Aqua rod to purify another few dozen Chimera Anima before she turned towards Sarah. Bu-Ling was bleeding from the mouth and had some bruises, but was not as badly beaten as her defeated opponent was. "You're overconfident in your abilities" Bu-Ling replied to Sarah…

Motoko and Zakuro continued to clash as well, both looking tired. Zakuro had a few cuts while Motoko had burns. Zakuro would also swing her Mew Aqua Rod at the Chimera Anima that approached the fight, neutralizing them…

"It's no use for us to continue this battle. Go home" Zakuro warned Motoko…

"A true warrior never runs away from battle!" Motoko replied…

Retasu, meanwhile, was fleeing from the Mecha-Tamas while enduring the pain of her wound…

"Where are you going?" Su said playfully as she descended in her mecha suit and blocked Retasu's path, trapping her between her and the Mecha-Tamas. The robotic turtles locked on Retasu and fired their weapons at her…

Fully expecting the attack, Retasu jumped aside, letting the powerful missiles and lasers hit Su's mecha suit. The dark-skinned scientist screamed with fear as she endured the explosions from inside her mecha. When the smoke cleared, the mecha's armor had been cracked…

"Maybe you shouldn't have made your robots so powerful! _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu shouted as she shot a full-power blast of high-pressure water from her castanets, successfully filtrating water through the cracks in the armor of Su's mecha, causing it to short circuit and stop functioning…

" _Not fair!_ " Su complained before finding herself forced to jump out of her mecha before it exploded, which it did spectacularly…

"Give up!" Retasu said…

"You didn't think we didn't have a plan B in case things went south, did you?" Su said with a smirk. "You know why we chose specifically this date to launch our large-scale attack? Because tonight is a Red Moon night!"

Indeed, the battle had lasted so long that night had fallen. A red moon was rising from the horizon. As it did, Su's body suddenly began to grow and transform. By the time the transformation sequence finished, Su had the body of a fully-grown adult with sexy curves and huge breasts…

The now bigger and stronger Su smirked as she advanced on poor wounded Retasu, and then she attacked. Retasu's attempts to fight back were fruitless as Su was now stronger and faster, completely dominating Retasu, punching and kicking her mercilessly…

"I… I'm going to die…" Retasu thought to herself as she was reaching her limit…

Su prepared to deliver the coup de grace, at which moment the badly beaten Retasu launched a final desperate water attack with all her might. The wave pushed Su back hard. Unknown to both girls, behind Su at that moment was exposed rebar from a building that Su's own weapons had destroyed. The result was not pretty, the broken iron bars stabbing into Su's back at several places, causing her to vomit blood along with more blood dripping from her back…

Poor Retasu was shocked and absolutely horrified at what she had accidentally accomplished. She started to cry…

"So… You _do_ have it in you…" Su faintly whispered with the last of her strength, her organs too damaged by the iron bars to keep her body functioning. She gradually lost consciousness as she exhaled her last breath…

Retasu fell on her knees, traumatized, her eyes full of tears. Then, she released a loud scream of anguish towards the night sky and the blood-red moon…


	31. An empty victory

By dawn, the battle was coming to an end. All of the Mew Mews were badly battered from fighting so many monsters all night, but they had managed to reduce an army of over 10 thousand enemies to just a few dozen. What few monster women that were left ended up retreating, and the several thousand ones that got depowered and defeated were captured, tied or locked up somehow, save for the many that ran away immediately upon losing their powers. It was hard to find a way to contain _all_ of them, especially since that entire district of Kanagawa had been reduced to ruins and rubble, completely wiped off the map…

Leon was in shock watching the entire crowd of evacuees cheer and praise him. He seemed to not know why he was suddenly getting such treatment…

Ryou approached Leon. "So? ...What does it feel like to be a hero?" he asked with irony…

"What? A hero?" a surprised and confused Leon replied…

"What else do you call a guy that manages to save this many lives?" Ryou said…

"This is what you aspired to your whole life, isn't it? You should be happy" Keiichiro told Leon…

Leon looked down, confused and a little disturbed. "But… that's not possible… This is the real world, there can't be such thing as a hero"

"Oh, I know what's going on here… Your beliefs were proven wrong, weren't they?" Ryou poked some fun at Leon's expense…

"Just let him enjoy the moment, Ryou!" Keiichiro said…

However, Leon was deaf to all the praise he was getting, the only thing in his mind at the moment was Retasu, the girl that preached those idealistic thoughts to him in the first place…

"Hi, handsome!" he heard an unknown female voice…

"Are you single?" another one said…

"Please marry me!" a third one said…

Leon woke up back to reality to find himself surrounded by a harem of unknown beautiful young ladies, all wanting to have the hero who had saved them…

Leon quickly retreated away from all the girls. "I-I've got something important to do!" he hastily said before running away from them, leaving them all disappointed…

" _Retasu-chaaaaan!_ " Leon screamed while running through the ruins. Wherever he looked, he saw the corpses of the people that couldn't evacuate in time, people of all genders and ages. He looked around at all the bodies, hoping Retasu was not one of them. On the way he passed by the ruins of the joint of Mew Mew Café that Ryou and Keiichiro had set in Kanagawa as their base of operations, not even that building escaped destruction…

When he found Retasu at last, she was on her knees, wounded, badly beaten, traumatized and crying. In front of her was the corpse of Dr. Kaolla Su, impaled on the rebar of a piece of building that her own army had destroyed previously…

"Retasu-chan…" Leon said, walking towards her…

"Leon-san… I…" she attempted to talk, but she was crying so much she couldn't even breathe properly in order to speak…

"…You did what you had to do" Leon said to her, kneeling beside her…

Retasu hugged Leon tightly and cried on his shoulder. " _I took a life,_ Leon-san!"

Leon tightly hugged his beloved Retasu back, in complete silence, letting her cry her heart out…

"Now I realize I was wrong, Leon-san! This is a world of kill or be killed! I don't know what kind of sugar bowl I thought I was living in, but it was all a lie!" Retasu cried…

Leon started to feel guilty for putting those thoughts on Retasu's beautiful head in the first place, and soon he started to cry too as he embraced Retasu protectively, wanting to never let go…

" _What do you mean Su is dead?_ " Naru screamed, back at Hinata House. She looked like she was about to completely lose her sanity, and her eyes started to shed tears. The news caused Shinobu to burst in tears and Mutsumi to be deeply shocked…

Sarah was the one reporting the sad news. She had been badly beaten up in her fight with Bu-Ling. "We did manage to destroy the entire district we attacked, but our army was almost entirely defeated and only a handful of them remain… And Motoko-san has gone missing!" she said sadly and nervously…

Naru let out a roar of pain, like a beast that has just lost its child, and immediately turned to the still-regenerating Keitaro. The guy had regenerated a bit but was still missing a good chunk of his body, but Naru did not care as she savagely pounced on him and started brutally beating him to a bloody pulp…

" _This is your entire fault, Keitaro! You killed Su! I'm going to put a curse on your entire family!_ " Naru cried hysterically as she took out all of her rage on poor Keitaro, breaking the bones he had just regenerated and further increasing his already-unbearable pain…

Shinobu, Mutsumi and even Sarah started to feel sick watching this scene, the same scene they had always considered so funny and hilarious had now twisted into a brutal and grotesque imagery that was making them feel like throwing up…

Meanwhile, at the teahouse halfway up the hill, Mitsune was serving Seta his tea, blushing intensely while she did. "Sensei… Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, Mitsune-chan" Seta replied calmly and with a smile…

"Why did you and your daughter decide to help in this grand scheme?" Mitsune asked timidly…

Seta adjusted his glasses. "Japan is a country with extremely rigid gender roles. If a man attacks a woman, by law she is not allowed to fight back or even defend herself, and must have a man protect her or let herself be abused without a right to even complain about it… But you already know that"

"Yeah, I know…" Mitsune admitted…

Seta took a sip of tea before continuing. "Hinata House is the Legendary Inn… It represents hope for every woman and girl in Japan, it is attributed with all sorts of mystical powers to ensure they find true love and get their deserved Happily Ever After…"

Mitsune blushed and smiled, staring longingly at the gentleman she could never have…

"Listen, Mitsune-chan…" Seta said suddenly but calmly…

"H-Hai…" Mitsune replied to show she was listening…

"Keitaro Urashima and Naru Narusegawa are the chosen couple that will usher humanity into a new golden age… _Nothing_ must get between them, not even death itself. No matter what the cost, we must make sure this fairytale has a happy ending for every woman in Japan… no… in the entire world" Seta said with a chilling seriousness he had never shown before…

Mitsune's facial expression went serious for the first time as well. "Count on me, sensei. So much effort went into getting Naru and Keitaro married… I won't allow it all to go to waste"

The evacuees were already being taken care of at hospitals and other centers of attention. Meanwhile, the monster attack that Naru launched on Kanagawa made the headlines all over the world…

"And in the latest news, yesterday the Kanagawa prefecture was attacked by a swarm of female-looking monsters. An entire district was completely destroyed and the body count is of over 30.000 and counting. Thankfully, most of the monsters were subdued by the squad of super-heroines known as Tokyo Mew Mew, at which point it was discovered that the monsters were actually human women and girls that had somehow mutated. One of our reporters interviewed a captured monster girl and this is what she said…" the news anchor said before the screen shifted to the former monster woman as she was answering the reporter…

"We're no longer living under the male gender's oppressive iron penis! We refuse to continue being sex objects to have our breasts groped, our intimacy violated and our panties stolen! From now on, we're going to fight back all we want and no longer depend on a man to protect us! The age of male dominance is coming to an end! Remember my words!" the former monster woman preached fanatically, her head full of the ideas that Naru Narusegawa put into it…

The screen shifted back to the studio for the news anchor to continue talking. "This incident has had repercussions not just in all of Japan, but upon the entire world. Up next we have the opinions of various people on the matter"

"I share the sentiment of these girls! Women must fight for their rights with the ferocity of a female mountain lion protecting her cubs!" an American woman passionately stated…

"We have had powerful women ruling our country in the past. Just look at Queen Victoria or Margaret Thatcher! I do not see why women cannot rule this world" a refined British lady stated calmly…

"I completely agree with these girls! In our country, women are being slaughtered every day because of possessive men that only see us as property! This has to stop! We demand _justice_!" an old woman from Argentina said while a crowd of women behind her was protesting and hitting metal casseroles with spoons to make noise in unison…

Next, the screen shifted to a bunch of 'experts' sitting around a debate table, discussing the matter. "What we have here is a social issue. In order for there to be peace, society needs to change from its very roots"

And then, the Queen of Molmol herself got a few minutes to express her opinion about the attack on Kanagawa. "My dear younger sister died for a noble cause yesterday, trying to set Japan free of its ancient sexist binds! We, the kingdom of Molmol, will do everything we can to make sure her struggle and that of her allies isn't in vain…!" she said, but then she broke into tears before she could finish her speech…

Again, the screen went back to the news anchor. "Is this extreme feminist uprising the symptom of a sickness of society? Do we need to change the paradigm in which human society operates? We shall keep you informed"

Ryou was the one watching that particular TV in Andr's bunker. He sighed and covered his face with his hands, looking depressed…

"Are you alright, Ryou?" Keiichiro asked him…

"What have we fought for, Keiichiro?" Ryou asked rhetorically. "We can fight off an alien invasion, yet we're completely inept at solving conflicts between ourselves! Humans are being an even bigger threat to themselves than super-powered beings from outer space! Just what the _fuck_ is wrong with our species?" he said in an increasingly exasperated tone, making Keiichiro worried…

"Leon-san's power source is nearly depleted from all the energy shots he had to fire at yesterday's battle. We have to swap it with a fresh unit" Keiichiro reminded Ryou…

"Coming…" Ryou said with a sigh and a disappointed look in his eyes…

Zakuro was lying on one of the beds, heavily treated after her battle with Motoko, and had not woken up at all since the battle. Minto had fallen asleep at the side of her bed as she was taking care of her, but her own body also showed signs of medical treatment. Retasu's wound had been treated too, while Ichigo and Bu-Ling didn't fare much better, yet they were still able to help around…

"You know? I had always wondered why Dr. Seto had built _a bunker_ under his house… Now I see he knew what he was doing" Ichigo commented, noting that Andr's house was now a pile of rubble along with every other building in the district, but his bunker was the only structure strong enough to survive…

Meanwhile, at the subterranean tunnels under Hinata House, Sarah and Shinobu walked to the cage where Keitaro was normally held. Shinobu's eyes widened as she saw Andr locked up in there…

"I injected him with the serum Su was working on, the one made from Keitaro's body fluids. That should have accelerated his face's healing rate" Sarah explained…

"Andr-kun…" Shinobu said, worried sick about him, a little scared by his glowing red left eye under the bandages…

"Is that you, Shinobu-chan?" Andr said in a cold and creepy monotone before he slowly unraveled the bandages around his head…

Shinobu was shocked. Even with his face fully healed, it was in plain sight that Andr would never be the same again. He had a robotic left eye taken from Leon's spares, which glowed with the same intimidating red light, and his left ear had been replaced with a receiver that had a small antenna on it. But the worst part was Andr's cold and emotionless look, empty and without the love he used to feel. Shinobu's eyes filled with tears as she realized the harm was long done and could not be reversed. That's what she got for taking Naru Narusegawa as her role model…

"Well, that's it. Have fun with your new boyfriend, Shinobu-chan" Sarah said as she walked away, satisfied that she fulfilled the promise she and Su had made to Shinobu, leaving her and Andr alone in the room…

There were several seconds of awkward silence as Andr and Shinobu stared at each other…

"Why did you have me kidnapped?" Andr finally broke the silence…

Shinobu could not reply…

"And where is that Indian barefoot bitch?" Andr said coldly…

Shinobu broke into tears. "Su-chan… is dead…"

Unmoved by Shinobu's tears, Andr instead put on a smug little smile "She had that coming to her!"

Shinobu gasped in utter and complete horror. Her mind was unable to even comprehend why Andr was being like that…

"Now, unless you want the same to happen to you… you open up this cell right now!" he said in calm anger, his glowing red eye glaring into Shinobu's very soul…

Shinobu tried to summon the courage to speak up "A-Andr-kun… I-I… I lo…"

"You've had your fucking chance!" Andr interrupted her. "You ran off to your stupid Senpai and left me years ago! I was fucking foolish enough to think there was still love in you… but after you did _this_ to me…"

Andr then paused and pointed at his robotic eye and ear…

"…You pretty much killed the Andr you knew and loved you _fucking heartless bitch!_ " Andr shouted furiously…

Shinobu broke down and ran away crying, covering her face with her hands. Andr showed no sign of remorse whatsoever…


	32. Aoyama

After having spent so much time in the hospital, Masaya Aoyama was finally outside and able to walk on the streets again. He had been moved to another hospital during the evacuation, but he was fine now, and walked around carrying a particularly long and thin bag…

"I wonder if Ichigo-chan is alright…" was the thought he had in his head…

As Masaya was crossing the street, a semi was speeding towards the distracted boy. Masaya suddenly woke up from his thoughts and dodged the car at the last second, escaping death unharmed…

"People should drive more carefully. I know we just had a disaster, but…" Masaya said before he continued on his way…

Motoko found herself in a dark hallway of a traditional Japanese mansion. Everything was huge, or rather she felt very small, and she had no sword to defend herself should something bad happen. She started hearing a noise…

Motoko slowly walked through the dark hallway, hearing nothing but that sound and her own steps on the hollow wooden floor. The noise became clearer as she approached the door at the far end, it sounded like the voice of a woman…

"Onee-sama?" Motoko whispered fearfully, the woman's voice sounded like soft moans, and they got louder and louder the more Motoko approached the door…

Shivering with fear, Motoko slowly opened the door…

"Onee-sama?" Motoko said again as she walked in…

The image Motoko saw filled her heart with horror and dread. A woman and a man were there, buck-naked, the man on top of the woman. The next thing Motoko saw was the head of a turtle, causing her to scream in utter and complete terror…

Motoko woke up from that nightmare, her forehead covered in sweat, still in shock. She was sitting with her back laid on a pile of debris…

"…I remember I managed to barely defeat that wolf girl, and then… I must have lost consciousness" Motoko thought to herself. Regardless, she got up, ignoring the pain of the burns Zakuro inflicted on her…

Motoko calmly walked through the ruins of the district she and her army of monster women attacked, not disturbed at all by the dead bodies lying everywhere…

Back at the bunker, Leon was getting dressed up after the repairs to the robotic parts of his body were done. " _Holy shit!_ The welding really hurt! You've gotta _turn me off_ before doing that!"

"Be thankful that your inorganic components are easy to repair. My magical girls are 100% flesh and bone, they don't heal so easily or quickly, even with their enhanced regeneration powers" Ryou replied…

Leon went to talk to his beloved Retasu. "Does it hurt much?"

"Don't worry, Leon-san. It doesn't hurt at all" Retasu lied, clearly wincing from the pain…

"Don't strain yourself. Wait for that plasma bullet wound to heal" Leon told her…

"Leon-san… I'm sorry… I was in charge of defending the hospital area… but I let the enemy take Dr. Seto away…" Retasu confessed sadly…

Leon's eyes widened in shock upon hearing that, and immediately went for the exit door…

"Where do you think you're going?" Ryou asked sternly…

"I've got a friend in need. Can you guys take care of Retasu-chan for me?" he said before walking out…

"Hey! _Come back!_ " Ryou shouted…

Ichigo looked down as she heard the entire conversation. "Masaya-kun was in the same hospital as Dr. Seto… I just hope he's alright… _Please_ Gods, tell me he's ok…" she thought to herself…

Masaya had wandered into the destroyed district, walking among the ruins, making a sad face at all the corpses of the people that didn't escape the monster attack on time…

Not long after, Motoko and Masaya met. They stopped at a few meters of distance from each other, a breeze starting to blow…

"I've been looking for you" Masaya said with a smile…

"I've got nothing to do with you. Step aside" Motoko replied coldly…

"Please listen to me, onee-san…!" Masaya insisted…

"I am _not_ your sister!" Motoko replied, getting ready to unsheathe her katana…

"Heh…" Masaya said, looking at Motoko's sword. "Now _that_ 's what I want" he said, then he opened the suspiciously long and thin bag, revealing a real katana just like Motoko's, and then let the bag fly away in the breeze…

Upon seeing Masaya with the katana, Motoko let go of the handle of her own katana. "You're already dead" she said before she turned around and tried to walk away…

"What do you mean I'm already dead?" Masaya asked. "I'm very much alive!"

"I already defeated you. There's no reason why I should fight you again" Motoko answered…

"I disagree. That's _exactly_ the reason we should clash blades again!" Masaya said…

Motoko looked back over her shoulder in a condescending manner. "Sore about your loss?"

"On the contrary. I'm happy to have met someone like you" Masaya replied…

"What?" Motoko said flatly as she turned around to face Masaya again…

"I had never been defeated at Kendo before…I started at the Kendo club at school, and before I realized it, I was the school's Kendo champion. Then I became the Tokyo Kendo champion in record time… but _why_? For quite a while I couldn't find an answer to that. Why did I have such a disturbing talent for Kendo? Why was I so unnaturally and inhumanly good at it? …Not to mention, it gets pretty lonely at the top, with nobody strong enough to pose even a minimal challenge… then you appeared…"

"I'm _not_ marrying you" Motoko said with disgust…

"Would you please listen to me?" Masaya shouted. "Over time I realized I did not remember anything from before I was 13 years old! I have no childhood memories, no parents and no family! It's not that I forgot them… I just _don't have_ them…"

Motoko chuckled at the idea "What are you? An artificial being created by an evil alien overlord to serve as a cover to hide his true identity?" she mocked him…

"That's exactly what I was going to say… How did you…?" a sincerely shocked Masaya said…

Motoko was now feeling awkward. "…I write fiction"

"Oh… Okay… So, said evil alien overlord was destroyed by the Tokyo Mew Mew, and I was saved and continue to live in this world to this day. I still have no family and I'm still unnaturally good at Kendo… then, one night, I came across somebody with similarly supernatural Kendo skills and the last name Aoyama, the same as me… What if I _do_ have a family? What if my uncanny talent at Kendo actually has an explanation? …Tell me, is the Aoyama family a line of samurai or something?" Masaya said…

"The Aoyama clan has a long and ancient history since the times when the youkai roamed the land. We are not just your normal samurai, but also a clan of demon-slayers" Motoko explained…

" _That's it!_ It _has_ to be! My name can't be Masaya _Aoyama_ without a reason! That would be a perfect fit for my bloodline!" Masaya said, for the first time losing his normal calm attitude as he couldn't hide his enthusiasm…

"Now you're insulting my family" Motoko said as she unsheathed her katana in calm anger. "Someone like you would be nothing but a stain of dirt in our honor"

"Why don't you put me to the test in a duel?" Masaya said seriously, unsheathing his own katana…

"Where did you get that sword? Did you buy it from some random store?" Motoko mocked him…

"I wish I could say it's a family heirloom of some sort, but I sadly have no family. I apologize if a common store katana offends you" Masaya said…

"Killing you will be insultingly easy. Don't expect a common katana to be able to endure the force of the Shinmei-ryuu style!" Motoko said, and then she attacked…

Once again, Motoko was surprised and a little miffed. She was aiming to kill Masaya, yet he was able to parry her every sword strike…

"You're still pretty good at imitating the style of an Aoyama… But _you're not an Aoyama!_ " Motoko said before attacking even more fiercely…

However, Masaya was able to still parry all of her attacks and they both locked blades with each other. "I'm not trying to mimic anything! This is my actual fighting style!" Masaya said…

" _Lies!_ " Motoko said before attacking madly, yet Masaya continued to prove a match to her by blocking her every strike. "If my older sister were here, she would have slain you where you stand!"

"You have an older sister? Is she as good as you?" Masaya asked…

"Tsuruko onee-sama could turn you to dust without even unsheathing her sword!" Motoko replied, attacking fiercely enough to cause Masaya to retreat. After that, she raised her sword in a manner Masaya remembered from their previous encounter…

With a swing of her sword Motoko unleashed a powerful ki-powered slash that left a fissure on the ground and destroyed everything in its way, yet Masaya dodged it precisely and without wasting a move, much to Motoko's shock…

"That's an _amazing_ technique! And you're not even an alien or something! It's so awesome that a human being can muster this much power!" Masaya complimented his opponent…

"Your compliments are like insults to me!" Motoko shouted angrily…

Motoko continued to attack relentlessly, pushing Masaya's skills to the limit. However, Masaya's unconscious smile as he parried her attacks, as if he were enjoying the fight, disturbed her…

"I'm going to cut that smile and leave you like the Kuchisake Onna!" Motoko shouted even more angrily…

"I'm sorry! It's just I've never had a kendo match this tough! It's as if we really were siblings who grew together studying in the same dojo!" Masaya commented, unable to hide how overjoyed he was…

" _I am not siblings with you!_ " Motoko screamed madly as she attempted to deal a death blow, but stopped when she realized the tip of Masaya's katana was stopped dangerously near her throat…

"That was close… If you had moved forward two more centimeters, I could have accidentally killed you" Masaya said. "You must not lose your cool during a kendo match, much less during a real fight"

Motoko jumped back to take some distance from Masaya. She was sweating, staring at her opponent with a puzzled and slightly scared look. "How's that possible? There's no way a man can beat me in my own field! What's wrong with me?" she thought…

"Take your time to catch your breath and calm down, onee-san. I can wait" Masaya said with a friendly smile…

" _Stop calling me your sister! I will never allow you to be part of my clan! Over my dead body!_ " Motoko screamed in rage as she charged blindly…

Masaya replied to this by stepping forward and hitting Motoko's stomach with the hilt of the sword, making her spew some blood…

"Why? …Why do you reject me so badly? …It's not a matter of skill, I'm sure of it" Masaya said with sadness…

Motoko stepped back, holding her stomach. "If you claimed to be just a branch member of the Aoyama clan, I'd certainly let it slide… But not only you dare be my equal at kendo, and not only you dare to be a man… the worst offense is that _you call yourself my sibling!_ "

"Why is that an offense?" Masaya asked…

Motoko went back to fighting stance, regaining her composure and more serious than ever, looking down in such a way that the bangs of her hair cast a shadow over her eyes…

"…Because my actual sibling dishonored the clan" Motoko revealed grimly…


	33. Broken honor

Masaya's eyes widened in shock, and then went to a sad look. "I'm sorry… I had no idea"

" _Of course_ you had no idea! You're not an Aoyama! You're just some freak from outer space!" Motoko yelled angrily…

Despite how hurtful Motoko's words were, Masaya held back his tears and remained silent…

"Tsuruko-oneesama was the best sword fighter that our family had produced in the current era. She was Japan's national Kendo champion before you even existed, and that's _the least_ of her accomplishments!" Motoko said. "She defeated a vampire in a single slash! She carved an entire tunnel through a mountain with a single stab of her sword! …And there was this one time where she cut a lightning bolt before it hit the ground! All of that before she became 18 years old!"

Masaya was suitably impressed. Considering what Masaya's very existence is, the things Motoko was saying actually sounded very plausible to him…

"That's more than I ever did in my life. Tsuruko-neesan must have been an amazing person" Masaya commented…

"But then…" Motoko's tone changed, turning significantly more somber. "…then she betrayed us all"

"What happened?" Masaya asked…

"As the elder daughter of the head of the clan, Tsuruko-oneesama was to be the successor of the Shinmei-ryuu… She could have had all the glory! She could have been on top of the world! …But she turned it all down…" Motoko said as she started getting angrier. "A man entered her life… He seduced her… He _corrupted_ her! …The elder sister I admired and loved so much refused a life of honor and glory in favor of… _being a housewife!_ "

"…But that's a very normal thing in our country! I'd understand your anger if this were America… but here in Japan, there's nothing wrong with a woman giving up on studies and work to be a housewife and a mother!" Masaya said…

" _Shut up!_ What do you know about the honor of a samurai clan?" Motoko screamed. "My sister dishonored our family and wasted all of her potential! End of story! …That's what I'd like to say… but that man didn't stop there… he did not stop there… He had to take my sister _one step further_ …"

Motoko then had a flashback on when she walked into her sister's room, the exact moment she was with her boyfriend there. In the present, Motoko shuddered as she remembered the moment that marked her forever…

"That lowly scoundrel had to commit the ultimate sin and penetrate my sister's innocence right in front of my eyes!" Motoko revealed, starting to cry, looking like she was about to go insane. "I… I saw the turtle's head!"

Understanding the euphemism, Masaya winced with a bit of disgust…

"I'm sorry… I had no idea it hurt you so much…" Masaya said sadly, beginning to lower his guard…

"But I won't let that happen again… After we have conquered this world, men will no longer force women to give up their promising futures! I will be stronger than all men! And I shall marry Keitaro Urashima and make _him_ my housewife!" Motoko said, progressively angrier, manifesting a dark and sinister aura full of hate and negative emotion. "I will kill the man who corrupted my beloved sister! I will kill _all_ of those sexist pigs! …Starting with _you_!"

Motoko attacked full-force this time. Masaya started having serious trouble trying to keep up with her. Motoko's attacks were not only much faster but also much stronger, and Masaya found himself unable to fully block the slashes, beginning to receive some surface cuts and lose some blood…

Meanwhile, Ichigo was worried sick and running all over the ruins. "Masaya-kuuuuuun!" she called desperately…

Eventually, Motoko made Masaya drop his katana and stabbed him. Then she pulled the blade out, causing Masaya's blood to splash. The boy fell to the ground, at Motoko's mercy…

"Pathetic… With such weak skills, you don't deserve to carry the name of Aoyama" Motoko said, raising her katana with the blade downwards, preparing to stab Masaya's heart…

" _Masaya-kun!_ " Ichigo shouted, interrupting Motoko. "If you so much as touch him, I'm going to break _every bone in your body!_ "

"Women that defend these sexist pigs are traitors to their gender… _Die!_ " Motoko said before lunging towards Ichigo…

The clash of metal blades echoed as Masaya somehow got up, grabbed his katana and rushed to protect Ichigo, laws of physics be damned because anime…

"You can hurt me all you want… _But I won't forgive you for attacking Ichigo!_ " Masaya yelled, and now he was _pissed_. Motoko was shocked to see an aura of blue ki manifest around him…

Masaya went into full offensive. Motoko fought back fiercely, and after several blade clashes, Masaya managed to break Motoko's katana, pointing his blade at her neck, glaring into her eyes with a killer stare that he must have showed only one other time in his entire life…

"I changed my mind… If your entire clan is like you, I don't want to be part of it! I will give up my last name of Aoyama so as to not be confused with the likes of you!" Masaya said harshly…

Motoko was mortified. Embarrassed beyond anything she had ever felt before. In desperation, she let go of her broken katana to pull out a hidden short blade…

"Don't bother continuing this fight. I will beat you as many times as necessary if it means preserving my beloved Ichigo-chan's life" Masaya said…

"…My clan has never been so insulted!" Motoko growled, turning the short blade downwards for stabbing like a knife. "My family's honor has never been so tainted…"

Motoko raised her hand with the short blade to stab, but Masaya then noticed how Motoko wrapped her other hand around the hand holding the blade, and his eyes opened wide as he knew exactly what she was going to do…

" _Don't do it!_ " Masaya screamed…

But it was too late. Motoko stabbed herself in the belly with the short blade, and then she proceeded to cut a horizontal line along her abdomen. That was a Seppuku blade…

Ichigo covered her horrified face, peeking between her fingers. Masaya was speechless and shocked. They both were forced to watch Motoko quickly bleed to death with nothing they could do to save her life. Masaya's eyes started to shed tears…

"Masaya-kun…" Ichigo said…

Masaya stayed silent for several seconds as the tears ran down his cheeks. "It really feels like I've just lost my sister…" he said as he tried his best to stay calm and composed…

At that moment, they heard some steps behind them and turned around. Someone looking like a slightly older Motoko, but wearing normal clothes and an apron, had arrived. "Looks like someone beat me to it…" she said calmly…

The woman walked slowly towards Motoko's corpse, and knelt down beside it…

"Are you…?" Masaya was about to ask…

"Thanks for stopping my little sister" the woman replied. "She was a good girl at heart, but she chose a path of war and destruction. By participating in the monster attack, she stained the honor of the family. I had come to slay her…" she then looked at the Seppuku blade in Motoko's hand. "…but now I see that wouldn't have been necessary"

The woman then took Motoko's dead body and carried it bridal-style. "What is your name, young man?"

"…Masaya Aoyama" he replied…

"Hmph… Must be fate… Anyway, I shall take her back to our house for a proper burial" she then started to walk away, but stopped. "Don't walk the path of the sword. Get married and live a happy life with your girlfriend there. Maybe we will cross paths again, Masaya Aoyama"

And with that, the mysterious woman left. Masaya continued to mourn…

"Masaya-kun…" Ichigo said to him, starting to caress his face…

"I have no memories of any event from before I was 13 years old, and I don't remember my parents… That's because I'm an artificial human created to cover the existence of an alien… I had no childhood, no parents… no family… I wanted to have a family…" Masaya said, starting to break down and cry…

Ichigo hugged Masaya tightly. "I will be your family, Masaya-kun! I will bear worthy heirs to your Kendo skills! We will start our very own Aoyama clan!"

"Would you do that for me, Ichigo-chan?" Masaya asked…

" _Yes!_ " she replied, starting to cry as well. "I don't care if people accuse me of not having dreams of my own, my dream is and will always be to be happily married to Masaya-kun and be the mother of his kids!"

Masaya hugged back just as tightly. "Thank you… Thank you so much, Ichigo-chan!"

And so the lovers kissed…

Meanwhile, at Hinata House, Sarah was walking through one of the hallways when Mitsune stood in front of her and blocked her way. "Oh, hi Sarah-chan!"

"Are you okay, Mitsune-san?" Sarah asked…

"Oh yes! I'm perfectly fine!" she replied nonchalantly "…Say, did you bring that Seto guy to the house and put him in Keitaro's cell? Hmmmm?"

Sarah got all stiff and sweaty. "Uh… Well, you see…"

"Good job" Mitsune said before she continued on her way towards the front door, leaving Sarah confused…

Shinobu walked in next. "Sarah-chan! Have you seen Mutsumi-san? I can't find her anywhere in the house!"

"No, I haven't seen her at all in the entire day" Sarah replied…

Elsewhere in the ruins, Leon walked tirelessly under the hot sun, like a machine, towards his objective…

" _Leon-kun!_ " a familiar voice shouted behind him…

Leon turned around to see Dr. Ami Mizuno. "It's been a while…" he said…

Dr. Mizuno walked up to Leon. "I'm sorry that I couldn't get back sooner. It took me longer than I thought to gather everybody"

"We managed on our own, somehow" Leon replied…

"I came earlier than the others because I have to give you this" Dr. Mizuno said, giving Leon a bite-sized transparent capsule with some shapeless organic life form inside…

"What is this?" Leon asked…

Dr. Mizuno hesitated to explain for a second. "You see… Not everyone in the industry of medicine is as honest as they should be…"

"You mean the lab-made sicknesses created solely to then sell the cure against them? Andr told me about them long ago" Leon replied…

"I see… Well, whatever you do, _don't_ let that capsule break until it's in Keitaro Urashima's body" Dr. Mizuno said…

"Isn't that guy an immortal with super regenerative abilities?" Leon asked…

"Exactly" Dr. Mizuno replied. "That capsule is the only way to defeat him for good… It's Tamatebako, a virus that destroys the body cells at a super-accelerated rate. It should be enough to counter Keitaro Urashima's regenerative abilities and leave him in a sort of hemophilic state, as the cellular regeneration and destruction cancel each other out. It is practically a bio-weapon"

"Do you _really_ have the clearance to get this thing?" Leon asked…

"Barely. I had to steal it from a secret military lab. I am _not_ proud of that!" Dr. Mizuno answered…

Leon stored the capsule in his pocket. "Thanks, Dr. Mizuno"

At that moment, Leon and Dr. Mizuno heard steps. When they looked toward the source of the sound, they saw Mutsumi standing there, staring at them seriously…


	34. Price of power

Leon immediately aimed his arm cannon at Mutsumi's head. "Orders from my creator are to kill all of the residents of Hinata Inn, every last one of them" he said coldly and robotically. "Even if you're undead, all I have to do is burst your head. Without a brain to send signals to the rest of your body, you'll be just an unmoving corpse"

"I'm here to request your help, cyborg-san" Mutsumi said seriously…

"I understand that you need help to die for good…" Leon replied…

"It's not for me…" Mutsumi said…

"Need your friends killed? I'm already on it" Leon said…

" _No!_ " Mutsumi shouted, starting to cry. "On the contrary! How can I prevent them from getting killed by the consequences of their own actions?"

Leon did not reply…

"…You were right, cyborg-san. If I had talked my friends out of this crazy plan in time, Su-chan and Motoko-san wouldn't…" Mutsumi cried. " _Please!_ Tell me how can I help the rest of them avoid that fate?"

"So, you want your friends to escape their deserved karma…" Leon said, shocking Mutusmi. "What's done is done. Your friends have already crossed the line. Look at all the dead people around us! If I don't kill your friends, somebody else will. There must be plenty of other people willing to avenge their loved ones who died here!"

Mutsumi fell on her knees, covered her face and cried. "I don't want Naru-san and Kei-kun to die…"

"Too late. They've crossed the line too far. Even if you do talk them out of their ways, they won't be easily forgiven… You girls thought you were heroes of justice, but _you're not_ … This is what happens when you let your power go to your head and think you can change the entire world…" Leon said, and then his look saddened as he clenched his teeth. "…just because you _think_ you're a hero"

Dr. Mizuno quickly did the math inside her mind, her sad expression indicating she caught the meaning of Leon's words. "Leon-kun… I think you shouldn't be so harsh on this girl"

Leon turned his arm cannon back into a hand without firing a shot, and lowered his arm "That doesn't matter anymore. The bottom line is that some people are too far into the darkness to be pulled out. Like I said, if I don't kill them, somebody else will want to get revenge on them anyway… The world is cold and unfeeling. Don't expect it to give a shit about your emotions"

"I still want to try" Mutsumi said…

"I think you should let this girl tag along with you, Leon-kun" Dr. Mizuno said…

"Why should I trust her?" Leon asked…

"Even though what you just said about the world is true, I still think that talking someone out of their evil ways is better than killing them. Besides, wouldn't killing them make you just like them?" Dr. Mizuno said…

Leon stayed silent for a few seconds. "I'm already like them"

He then continued to walk forward towards his objective, walking past Mutsumi as if ignoring her completely. However, he stopped…

"I didn't catch your name…" Leon said without looking back at her…

Mutsumi got up and turned around. "My name is Mutsumi Otohime. Pleased to meet you"

"You may come if you so wish… But don't expect an anime happy ending" Leon said as he started moving forward again, followed by Mutsumi…

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the ruins, Mitsune was sitting on the ground with a bottle of sake on hand, looking a little sad. "So… What does it feel like to die? …It's okay, you don't have to reply…"

Turns out Mitsune was sitting in front of Su's corpse, which was still impaled in the rebar of that piece of building. Even though Su was dead, Mitsune still had been polite enough to leave a small sake dish served beside her, probably as a sign of respect…

Mitsune took a sip of her sake bottle as if trying to drown the sorrow before she continued her one-sided conversation. "Yeah… Shinobu-chan did not take the news of your death very well… but rest easy that your promise to her was fulfilled. Sarah-chan brought that Andr kid to her"

Mitsune took another sip of sake, her nose and cheeks starting to go red…

"Motoko hasn't come back home either. Is she there with you on the other side? …The house is awfully quiet without you two…" Mitsune lamented before taking another, longer sip of her sake. "It's no longer fun…"

Mitsune started to get up, with some difficulty due to the alcohol's influence…

"Well… I've got something to do now. Your country's soldiers will be here to retrieve your body any minute now, so they can take you back home and give you a proper Molmol burial ceremony… Goodbye, Su-chan" Mitsune said her last goodbyes to Su before walking away, unable to move in a straight line…

At Hinata House, Naru had already caught on the news that Andr was a prisoner in the cage where Keitaro used to be locked up. She looked at him with contempt from the other side of the bars…

"To think we had to lose Su-chan and Motoko to finally capture you dirty piece of trash…" Naru growled…

"Motoko is dead too, huh? It's about time that kendo bitch bought it. That monster had no honor" Andr said coldly…

Naru replied by sticking her arm through the bars, grabbing Andr from the neck and lifting him. "Don't forget I can easily snap your neck like a little twig!" Naru yelled…

"Fuck you!" Andr replied, and then he spat on Naru's face…

Naru prepared to punch Andr…

"Senpai, wait please!" Shinobu screamed behind her. Had it been anyone else, Naru wouldn't have stopped, but she stopped for Shinobu. "Andr-kun is my man… I'm the one who should punish him"

Naru let go of Andr's neck and started to walk away, giving Shinobu the key to the cell along the way. "Fair enough… Beat him with all your might, Shinobu!"

Left alone in the room with Andr once more, Shinobu hesitated, but then slowly put the key on the cage's door and opened it, stepping inside…

Andr slowly got back on his feet, and then looked away. "You should have just let her do it. It's not like my life is worth the trouble"

"Andr-kun…" she said timidly, blushing and trying to summon the courage to speak to him. "No… I couldn't… I want to believe that somewhere inside of you is the Andr-kun that I grew up with…"

"Tsk! Look, bitch. After you destroyed my face and almost killed me you shattered any part of me that still had hope for you" Andr replied harshly, retreating into the darkness of the back of the cell, only the red glowing light of his cybernetic eye showing that he was still there, glaring at Shinobu in an angry way…

However, instead of being intimidated, Shinobu ventured into that small dark corner and grabbed Andr's hand. "Get out of the dark!" she said, and she started trying to pull Andr out of the darkness, literally…

But Andr refused to leave the dark side of the cage, struggling with her. They seemed to have equal strength, with neither one gaining a big advantage over the other. But then, Andr suddenly pulled Shinobu close and punched the poor girl on her beautiful face. Shinobu's cheek became swollen, ruining her beauty, and she bled from her mouth…

"Don't you ever try to force me out of here, you stupid bitch! You brought me here and I'm going to fucking stay here until that brown-haired bitch ever kills me or this place falls on top of me!" Andr yelled furiously…

Even with her face ruined and hurting, Shinobu ignored the pain and again tried to pull Andr out of the darkness without saying a word…

" _I said let me the fuck go you fucking cunt!_ " Andr yelled furiously before he kicked Shinobu hard in the chest…

The poor girl fell flat on the cold floor, feeling insufferable pain yet remaining completely silent. Shinobu slowly got up, and still with that unbearable pain she again tried to pull Andr out of the darkness. Andr would have none of that, and he tried to pull Shinobu close again to try to trip her up. This time, however, Shinobu embraced Andr in a hug before he could do anything. She remained tightly hugging him, not saying anything. Shinobu's body was warm…

Andr tried to make Shinobu let go, only slightly fazed. "Let me go! No, Shinobu. I am not ever going to fucking love you! Besides, you rejected me two weeks ago!" he said coldly before quickly pushing Shinobu off him, noticing then that she was crying…

"I'm not going to let you go, Andr-kun…" Shinobu said. "I don't mind if you don't love me. This isn't for me… All I want is for you to smile again…"

" _Smile?_ You want me to fucking smile, bitch! Heh, after all you did to me! You broke my face, called me disgusting! _And broke my heart_! You think I can even smile now... Your fucking friends destroyed my house! And murdered my friends!" Andr yelled. Then, he paused for a second to look down to the dirty floor of the cell, tears falling from his real eye, before he continued. "...My neighbors and even my students… You think I didn't know that? My robotic ear can connect to most of the communication channels in the area, and since I came here, all I have been hearing about is _what you and your fucking friends did_!"

Shinobu had no answer for that. She turned around and slowly walked out of the cage. Then she closed the door and locked it, before she finally left Andr crying alone…

"…The next I knew, I was part-machine" Leon told Mutsumi as they walked together among the ruins, showing her how his right arm transforms into a plasma cannon and back…

"You must have been horrified" Mutsumi commented…

"The initial shock wore off quickly. Soon I learned about the capabilities of my new body. I felt reborn. I was stronger! Faster! Tougher! I felt on top of the world! And to top it all off, Andr had also given me a couple free weapons, since my arms could now morph into these plasma cannon things like Mega Man! …To me, it was a dream come true! I could finally be like the superheroes I watched on TV when I was little! Like the mighty characters of the videogames I played!" Leon explained…

Mutsumi giggled. "That's cute"

"Not so cute when I actually started _using_ my new-found superpowers… Had I been smarter, I would have questioned why Andr made me so powerful and gave me weapons… but no. Instead, I happily accepted the fact and ran out to the streets to fight 'For Great Justice'… like _a fucking idiot!_ " Leon said, growing angry at himself when he remembered…

"Why? What happened?" Mutsumi asked…

"Life is not a TV show or a videogame. _That_ 's what happened" Leon replied…

Leon's mind flashed back to various events, such as firing his plasma gun while in pursuit of a simple purse-snatcher. Without any prior training, Leon's aim was disastrous, and he caused abundant property damage.

In another occasion, he tried to use his strength to stop a truck from accidentally running someone over, unaware that suddenly stopping the truck would cause its driver to fly through the windshield and end up gravely injured.

Of course, Leon would then try to save the truck driver he himself injured, by lifting the man with his arms and running to the hospital. While his robot legs were fast enough to take him there quickly, the method of carrying the man carelessly like that only worsened his condition and resulted in the man's death…

Leon's handling of hostage situations was also dreadful. No matter how strong, speedy, resistant and heavily armed you are, charging against the criminals frontally and beating them up wouldn't save any lives, instead getting the hostages killed in the crossfire. Getting into brawls with the local gangs would also prove a problem when Leon's punches drove the enemies right through the concrete walls of innocent people's houses, destroying their property…

Eventually Andr was forced to pull the Kill Switch for the first time, deactivating Leon…

"Dr. Seto! Your creation is a threat to our society! The government demands you dismantle this modern Frankenstein's monster!" a government official demanded to Andr…

"Andr was forced to surrender his research to the government and work on several other projects of theirs for free to pay for all the damage… and it was all because of me. Way to thank the man who had saved my life after that train accident…" Leon narrated with regret in his voice…

"That's pretty sad… You only wanted to make the city a better place but ended up causing more damage… I had seen the news of the crazy out-of-control bionic man when they aired it on TV, but I never knew your side of the story…" Mutsumi said…

"After that, I tried the _opposite_ approach. I tried to be much more careful and make sure to abide by the law and such. Want to know how _that_ went?" Leon said…

"Not really… It's been enough heart-wrenching stories for a day" Mutsumi replied…

"To make a long story short, I'll just say the cunning street rats started taking advantage of the loopholes as soon as I showed them the least bit of leniency. The Tokyo Mew Mew had it easy, dealing mostly with mindless monsters that had no strategy. A human enemy is far more dangerous than a Chimera Anima when you're not allowed to kill him" Leon said…

"And how did you solve that dilemma?" Mutsumi asked…

"I didn't solve it. Andr did. Things started to go slightly better once I started listening to him. His idea of working under the cover of the night solved many problems, as did keeping my moves a secret" Leon answered. "But ever since then, I never tried to tackle the world again. Bite more than you can chew, and you'll end up with a broken jaw"

All of the things Leon told her made Mutsumi ponder…

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the ruins, Keiichiro was walking outside, carrying a bag with supplies he had just bought, when he noticed someone alive coming his way. The person was unable to walk straight, swaying around as she tried to move. He immediately rushed to her aid. "Are you alright?"

Mitsune accidentally planted her face on Keiichiro's chest. "Huuuh? Whooo'z goddin mah way… Mooovid, wouuuldya?" the drunken girl said as she lifted her gaze up to see the face of the person she collided with…

When Mitsune's view focused and she saw Keiichiro's face, she opened her eyes in shock. Keiichiro noticed that Mitsune's eyes were literally those of a fox, which shocked him as well. Mitsune jumped back from him…

"Mitsune-san! Is that you?" Keiichiro said…

"What? How do you know my name?" Mitsune asked…

"It's me, Keiichiro Akasaka! Dr. Shirogane's assistant!" Keiichiro said…

Keiichiro's name rang a bell for Mitsune, and she quickly closed her eyes again and regained her usual calm. "Ooohoho! If it isn't good old Keiichi! You've grown into quite the charming prince!"

"…Yeah… I get that said to me a lot" Keiichiro admitted, slightly embarrassed…

And at Hinata House, Keitaro came out of the hot spring, fully regenerated, but wearing only a towel…

" _Pervert!_ " Naru yelled as she came out of nowhere and punched Keitaro through the wall. "Get dressed and come with me! We're settling this matter once and for all!"

"Yes, Narusegawa-san…" Keitaro said after he put his broken neck back together and got up. After Keitaro dressed, they both walked out of the house and towards the ruins…


	35. Death of the immortal

Several hours had passed since Keiichiro had left Andr's bunker to bring supplies. The Mew Mews looked worried and Ryou's patience was also growing thin…

"I'm going to look for him. You girls don't step out of this bunker, no matter what" Ryou said as he hastily got up from his chair…

"But Shirogane-san! Leon-san, Ichigo-san and Aoyama-san haven't come back either! It may be too dangerous to go all by yourself!" Retasu said…

"I'm sure Leon, Ichigo and Masaya are fine! They're strong!" Bu-Ling replied optimistically…

"Yes, but Keiichiro…" Minto remarked, still not leaving the comatose Zakuro's side…

"I'll be back in 10 minutes" Ryou said seriously before leaving the bunker to search for his missing friend…

The sun was almost done setting, and night was starting. Naru and Keitaro walked through the ruins of the city. Keitaro looked around at all the corpses and started feeling sad…

"Narusegawa-san…" he called…

"What do you want?" Naru replied…

"…I'm starting to think we've abused our power" Keitaro said…

Naru replied by punching Keitaro, sending him crashing through one of the few walls that were left. " _Don't question me!_ I'm the hero here! My fight is to bring justice to the oppressed gender!"

Keitaro winced in pain as he put his broken bones back into place by himself. "But then why are there dead women in this battlefield too?"

Naru stomped on Keitaro. "Because those were traitors who sided with the men!" she replied…

Leon and Mutsumi just happened to arrive to see Naru stomping Keitaro. Mutsumi looked sadly at this scene while Leon's expression remained cold…

It took Naru a few seconds to realize she was being watched, and she stopped stomping on Keitaro to turn around and look at Leon and Mutsumi. "What coincidence. I was heading to that pervert Seto's bunker to finish you all off" Naru said…

"And I was heading towards your Legendary Brothel to kill you and the other remaining whores. What coincidence indeed" Leon replied…

"Naru-san! There's still time! Please, let's stop this wave of violence before the rest of our friends die too!" Mutsumi pleaded…

"Mutsumi? …What's the meaning of this? Are you siding with the men?" Naru asked angrily…

" _No!_ I'm here to save you, Naru-san!" Mutsumi replied "I'm your friend, and that means I must protect you… even if that means stopping you from walking the wrong path"

"What are you talking about? Do you have any idea what we've fought so hard for? We're about to bring justice to all women in the world! We fight _for justice_! There's no way we can be on the wrong path!" Naru said…

"…She's acting just like you did all those years ago, Leon-san" Mutsumi said…

"I noticed" Leon said coldly before he stepped forward and looked at Naru's eyes. "Listen, woman… Power without restraint can never lead to justice. If you don't learn that your actions have consequences, you'll never be a hero!"

" _Shut up!_ What do you know about justice! You're _a man_! You're the oppressors that treat us like sex objects!" Naru shouted madly…

"You talk like you've been raped!" Leon shouted back…

"…Well, I was never _raped_ , but…" Naru said…

"Have you ever questioned _why_ you have the powers you have?" Leon asked…

"Why would I question myself over something that's natural to me? That's as if a person questioned himself on why he has to go to the toilet! Nobody stops to think of that!" Naru answered…

"Neither did I at first…" Leon said before he transformed his right arm into a cannon and looked at it. "…and it's only these last days that I finally got the answer, after Andr gave me his last orders…"

Leon then aimed his arm cannon at Naru's head…

"I was created specifically to kill _you_ " Leon revealed. "It all makes sense now! The strength, the speed, the resistance… And these guns I have for arms, designed specifically to counter your martial arts"

At that moment, Keitaro slowly got up. He had already regenerated from all the damage Naru inflicted on him, and stood in Leon's line of fire to protect Naru. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you carry out your program, or whatever it is!" Keitaro said politely but defiantly. "Before you can even touch Narusegawa-san, you will have to get over my dead body!"

Naru blushed and her eyes showed surprise. "… _Baka!_ I don't need your protection! I'm perfectly capable of looking out for myself!"

"I'm ok with it. I hate you anyway" Leon replied to Keitaro…

"Please wait, Leon-san! I can talk them out of this! I know I can!" Mutsumi pleaded…

"Mutsumi…" Naru said, calling her attention, then pushed Keitaro aside and walked towards her. "You have one last chance. Return to our side and fight with us for the future of all women"

Mutsumi looked seriously at Naru's eyes. "I won't"

"I was wishing you wouldn't say that…" Naru said before attacking Mutsumi…

Leon attempted to aim his arm cannon to shoot at Naru, but Keitaro attacked him, knocking him back…

"Didn't you hear me? To get to Narusegawa-san, you will have to get over my dead body first!" Keitaro said while in fighting stance, and then continued to attack relentlessly, making Leon retreat. "I won't give you any time to gather energy for that charged attack!"

Leon was barely able to parry Keitaro's fast and relentless barrage, and retreated far enough that the two fights ended up a fair distance apart from each other. On Mutsumi's side, Naru attacked relentlessly as well, but she was not nearly as skilled as Keitaro, and Mutsumi easily parried her attacks, and then grabbed Naru by the arm and threw her down…

"You're too impatient and overconfident with your attacks, Naru-san" Mutsumi remarked…

"Shut up, you stuck-up bitch!" Naru yelled as she threw a sweeping kick at Mutsumi's legs. Mutsumi jumped away from it on time. "I'm sick of you always looking down on me!"

"I never looked down on you, Naru-san!" Mutsumi said…

"Why wouldn't you? You were always outshining me at everything! You're prettier, smarter, more skilled, and have bigger breasts… and I always _hated_ you for it!" Naru confessed with tears of frustration and anger…

"My apologies. I didn't mean to offend you… But still, I must stop you before you do something you will regret!" Mutsumi said, going back to battle stance…

Naru fully got up. " _Bring it on, bitch!_ "

Leon jumped away from Keitaro and fired his arm cannon at him. Keitaro carefully dodged the shots and continued to attack without giving Leon a chance to catch his breath. Eventually Keitaro broke Leon's defense and started beating him mercilessly. Keitaro's Jeet-Kun-Do moves were too fast for Leon to read them, and were much more refined since, unlike Naru, Keitaro favored finesse over brute force. Leon was knocked down, lying on the floor badly battered…

"What's all that cyborg strength worth if your fighting style isn't refined enough? Speed, not strength. Skill, not power. You'll never beat me with those slow and clumsy moves" Keitaro said to Leon…

Leon grunted in pain and got up. " _I'll give you speed, you son of a whore!_ " he yelled as he started attacking Keitaro with the superhuman speed that his cybernetic enhancements gave him. Keitaro struggled to dodge the barrage of machine-speed punches, carefully observing Leon as he waited for a window to counterattack and retreated to stay out of the range of his fists. Noticing Leon wasn't using his legs, Keitaro dropped down and used a sweep kick, bringing Leon down. However, Leon stopped his fall with one hand while transforming the other arm into a cannon and shooting Keitaro, wounding him…

Leon got up and wiped the blood off his mouth. Keitaro's wound quickly closed while he grunted in pain. "You're using guns in a fist fight! That's not fair!" he remarked…

" _I don't give a shit!_ " Leon screamed as he started repeatedly blasting Keitaro without giving him a chance to get up, hell-bent on seeing him dead…

Already with many bruises and a little blood in her mouth, Naru was pissed that Mutsumi continued to best her time and time again. She lifted up a piece of building bigger than herself and screamed wildly as she threw that huge stone at Mutsumi. The undead woman was barely able to roll aside in time to avoid it. Naru wasted no time to run and kick Mutsumi in the face, sending her rolling on the dirty ground…

Elsewhere in the ruins, a very worried Ryou searched in the moonlit night, hoping nothing bad had happened to Keiichiro. Unfortunately, his fear was confirmed…

" _Keiichiro!_ " Ryou shouted as he ran to his badly-battered friend. Keiichiro had been beaten within an inch of his life. Ryou crouched down by his side…

"Ryou…" Keiichiro said weakly…

"Don't talk!" Ryou replied for his friend's safety…

"…Number zero… the bunker…" was all that Keiichiro could say before passing out…

"…Oh, no!" Ryou thought in shock after putting the pieces together in his mind…

"It's been 20 minutes and Shirogane-san hasn't come back… Neither has Leon-san, or Ichigo-san…" Retasu said, worried sick about them all…

"Shirogane-san said we don't step out of the bunker no matter what!" Minto reminded her…

The Mew Mews then heard someone knocking on the bunker's metal door…

"Don't open the door, Retasu-san!" Minto told her. "It's not Shirogane-san! He has a key, remember?"

"Are the kitties at home?" Mitsune's voice sounded from the other side. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way… I beat the living daylights out of Keiichi, and your other friends will be next if you don't come out!"

Mitsune's threat was easily able to get to Retasu, who was too worried about her friends' well-being to care about her own. Ignoring Minto's warnings, Retasu opened the door…

"You're a smart girl…" Mitsune remarked. Her nose was red from how much she had drunk on the way…

Suddenly, Bu-Ling swung like a monkey from the upper side of the bunker's door frame, trying to kick Mitsune. The fox-faced woman stumbled away from the attack, dodging it. Bu-Ling attacked Mitsune with her monkey-style kung-fu. However, Mitsune started moving erratically and in an unpredictable way while dodging Bu-Ling's attacks, and then counterattacked in a weird way that was in sync with her drunken steps, delivering a precise blow on Bu-Ling's solar plexus, knocking the young Chinese martial artist out cold in front of the shocked eyes of Retasu and Minto. After that, a smirking Mitsune turned towards Retasu and Minto…

Leon stopped blasting away at Keitaro, looking tired. He had already depleted half his battery blasting the guy to pieces. However, Keitaro's pieces just came back together and Keitaro regenerated, suffering the pain through the entire process. "Are you fucking kidding me?" Leon said…

Keitaro slowly got up, good as new even after so much punishment. "I've gotta hand it to you. Any other person would be dead after getting into a fight with you. No wonder even my sister met her end by your hand"

"You reminded me, her last words were about you" Leon replied…

"Well, you can apologize to her in the afterlife" Keitaro said as he cracked his knuckles, ready to kick Leon's metallic ass. Leon tried to shoot at him before he could move, but Keitaro was faster and punched him out before he could fire…

While Keitaro was thrashing Leon, Naru was also getting the upper hand on Mutsumi. Badly beaten, the undead woman was laying face-up on the ground, looking at Naru standing over her. Naru was holding a big piece of stone over her own head…

"Naru-san… Please stop this… for your own good and for Kei-kun too…" Mutsumi pleaded weakly one last time…

"…I can't… I'm sorry, Mutsumi…" Naru replied, and then dropped the big stone on Mutsumi's head. Meanwhile, at the bunker, Mitsune threw the unconscious Minto and Bu-Ling into the bunker, and then took out a Molotov cocktail she had made out of another sake bottle, lit it and threw it inside Andr's bunker, starting a fire. After that, she lifted Retasu over her shoulder and carried her away…

No matter what angle one looked at it, the situation was utterly hopeless. The bad guys won in the end, our heroes had all been defeated and annihilated…

Leon's attempt to fight back against Keitaro ended in failure, crashing hard onto the ground after Keitaro planted a palm-thrust hard enough on his chest. Leon coughed up blood as he lay defeated…

"You've caused us enough pain… You took my sister's life, and you ruined my wife's dream…" Keitaro said grimly, and then he got on top of Leon and started slowly beating him to death. Leon saw the view of his cybernetic eyes get blurred by static, and knew he was about to die…

Keitaro prepared to deliver the coup de grace, making sure to scream out loud with a Japanese kiai to put all of his energy into that final blow…

Noticing this, Leon knew it was now or never. He took the capsule with the Tamatebako virus that Dr. Mizuno had given him out of his pocket and shoved it into Keitaro's wide-open screaming mouth. Keitaro instinctively bit on the capsule, breaking it. A cloud of white smoke burst from the capsule and the virus spilled into his mouth and his respiratory tract, spreading into his organism…

Keitaro instantly began feeling sick and coughing. He got up and started retreating, barely able to stand straight, feeling dizzy and having his sight blurred. He had to hold onto a nearby ruin to avoid falling over…

"Keitaro! I already took care of the traitor!" Naru said as she walked into the scene, finding Leon beaten and lying on the ground, and Keitaro standing. "I see you also did your part. Truth be told, I didn't expect a weakling like you to win"

Keitaro was starting to look older due to the sickness. As soon as the sick Keitaro noticed Naru walking towards him, he desperately stumbled towards her for help, tripping and landing his face on Naru's breasts…

"You… _You sick pervert!_ " Naru shouted furiously as she started beating Keitaro up mercilessly, breaking his bones as usual, ending with a punch that sent him through a wall and broke his neck. "You'll never change, will you?"

Naru then waited for Keitaro to regenerate, but this time nothing was happening…

"Hurry up regenerating, Keitaro! We've got a world to take over!" Naru yelled angrily at her husband…

Keitaro was not even moving…

"Aw, _come on!_ Stop playing dead! You know my punches can't kill you! You're stronger than that!" Naru said, but got no response. " _For fuck's sake, Keitaro!_ You're fucking scaring me!" Naru yelled angrily as she walked up to Keitaro and crouched down next to him. "Keitaro?"

Keitaro's wounds and broken bones did not regenerate. He was not even breathing…

"Keitaro…" Naru whispered with her eyes wide open in utter shock, and tears started appearing in her eyes…


	36. The scheming fox

" _Keitaro! Wake up!_ " Naru cried as she shook Keitaro's dead body. "Come on! You can't die! You _can't do this to me!_ "

Leon struggled to slowly get up. "It's no use. Your husband is dead"

"You're lying…" Naru whispered as tears ran down her cheeks…

"Your actions have consequences. Without his regenerating curse, your husband is just as much of a mortal as any average human. If only you had known he could die, you'd have taken better care of him" Leon said…

Naru let out a scream of deep anguish that echoed through the starry sky…

"I did just as you asked of me in your final moments, Kanako Urashima… I saved your brother from his immortality curse. Now he can finally rest in peace" Leon thought to himself…

Naru cried inconsolably over Keitaro's corpse…

Meanwhile, as Andr's bunker burned down, three mysterious women carried the Mew Mews outside, saving them from the fire. A Shinto priestess with long black hair was carrying Minto, a woman with long blonde hair and a big red bow on her head carried Bu-Ling, and a tall woman with brown hair tied into a ponytail rescued Zakuro. Dr. Mizuno then walked into the scene…

"Took you long enough, Ami" the priestess said…

" _You_ 're the ones who are late, Rei!" Dr. Mizuno replied…

"I'm amazed they could repel that monster invasion even without our help" the tall woman with the ponytail commented…

"They grow up so fast!" the blonde woman with the big red bow said happily. "In a few years they will be even stronger than us!"

"Where's Usagi-san? Hasn't she arrived yet?" Dr. Mizuno asked…

"The klutz we have for a leader probably got lost" Rei said, annoyed…

Ryou arrived, breathing heavily from having to run all the way back to the burning bunker, but was able to breathe with relief when he saw that his magical girls had been rescued on time. "Where's Retasu?"

"She was not in the bunker" the blonde with the big bow replied, worrying Ryou…

Back at the battlefield, Naru couldn't stop crying her heart out, hugging Keitaro's dead body. Leon only watched…

"I love you, Keitaro…" Naru sobbed. "I love you so much! …But I never told you… I was too afraid of being seen loving a loser like you… I fooled myself into thinking I hated you because I was too much of a coward to face the truth!"

"What is this? The mighty Naru Narusegawa crying like a baby?" Mitsune's voice was heard. The fox-faced woman then walked out from behind a nearby piece of wall, and stood behind Naru…

"It's over… Keitaro was all I had… Now there's nothing left…" Naru said, devoid of will to continue living on her own…

"Heh… In the end, you _did_ depend on a man… How pitiful" Mitsune said. "Now, don't get me wrong, I never hated you or anything, despite the fact you were always prettier and more popular with the boys than me. My resentment is against those boys, not against you… But that's not the reason why I had Seta-sensei drift away from the both of us… even though I loved him just as much as you did…"

Naru didn't seem to be listening. She seemed to have died on the inside…

"Naru… You were the chosen one… You were going to be the symbol of strength and hope for all women in the world. It was my duty to make sure your fairytale with Keitaro had its Happily Ever After… that's the favor I owe to obaa-san… But look at you now, turned into a mess of tears… I can't see you like this. No woman can… The dream must live on…" Mitsune said as she slowly took out a kitchen knife…

" _Stop!_ " Leon shouted…

Mitsune stabbed Naru in the back, piercing right through Naru's heart. The feminist leader died hugging the man she had mistreated all her life, and only in death they looked like a proper couple…

"You filthy vixen! You _killed your own friend!_ Is nothing sacred to you?" Leon yelled, pointing his arm cannon at Mitsune…

"Not so fast!" Mitsune said as she pulled a beaten and tied-up Retasu from behind the ruins, using her as a human shield…

"You fucking piece of shit…" Leon growled…

"Just a little backup plan in case of the slim chance that you managed to defeat Keitaro and Naru. If you want to see your girlfriend alive, come to the Hinata Inn" Mitsune said…

"It was all your doing, wasn't it? _All_ of the shit that happened that eventually led to the murders…" Leon said…

"Manipulating Seta-sensei into disappearing from Naru's life without any goodbye? Yes. Directing Naru towards Hinata Inn? Yes, I was the one who told her about it in the first place. Putting Keitaro in her path? Come on! They looked so cute together! Especially when she was pummeling him!" Mitsune confessed…

" _Who gave you the right to play with these people's lives?_ " Leon screamed furiously…

"If you want to find that out, come to the inn. We'll be waiting for you" Mitsune said before she retreated with superhuman speed and agility…

Before going after Mitsune, Leon stopped by Mutsumi's headless body, her head reduced to a splatter of blood under the rock that Naru dropped on her earlier. Without a brain to send and receive signals from the rest of the body, Mutsumi was dead for good…

"I'm sorry, Mutsumi… If I had been a proper hero, you wouldn't have ended like this…" Leon apologized with tears in his cybernetic eyes. He stayed there mourning Mutsumi's death, doing a minute of silence for her before wiping his tears and moving on, rushing towards Hinata Inn at maximum speed…

A while later, Retasu slowly opened her eyes, finding herself under a familiar ceiling. "I've been here before…" she thought…

"Rise and shine, Miss Midorikawa… Rise and shine…" Mitsune's voice said…

Retasu got startled and fully woke up to find herself tied on a bed. In the room with her were Mitsune and, much to Retasu's shock, Haruka Seta, professor Seta's wife, who she, Leon and Dr. Mizuno had visited a while ago and hadn't seen her since the whole Kanako incident…

"Welcome back to Hinata House!" Mitsune greeted with a sly smile…

"Haruka-san! What are you doing here? …What am _I_ doing here?" Retasu asked, scared…

Haruka smoked her cigarette calmly. "I heard the news… now both of my cousins have kicked the bucket…" she said, and then suddenly clenched her fist furiously, crushing the pack of cigarettes she had in her hand. "That cyborg bastard you have for a boyfriend is going to pay…"

"Show some respect to our guest, Haruka-chan!" said a voice that Retasu immediately recognized…

Entering the room was none other than the same short old lady that Retasu had met and befriended way back when she first arrived at Kanagawa…

"Obaa-san! You're back!" a surprised Haruka said to her grandmother…

"Obaa-san?" Retasu echoed, surprised…

"It's been a while, sweet young lady… Oh! Where are my manners? I forgot to introduce myself that time when we met!" the old lady said. "…I am Hinata Urashima. This is my inn I built decades ago with my own hands"

Retasu was speechless. She had so many questions but couldn't bring out even a single one…

"You must have a lot of questions, so lend me some of your time to answer them" Hinata said. "As you know, this inn is legendary. It is said it has the power to enter anybody into Tokyo University, thereby allowing you to enter it in the same year as your beloved, and thus making your love last forever. It is also said that confessing to your loved one in the nearby ruins of the old inn will cause the love between the two to last forever… Recently, it has been attributed the power to help you get revenge on cheating boyfriends and mistreating husbands, to allow you to get rid of what's preventing you from reaching your true love…"

Retasu listened silently and respectfully to the old lady as she continued her speech…

"As you can see, this inn is a symbol of hope for every female in Kanagawa prefecture. As long as this inn stands, fairytales can come true and every princess can find her Prince Charming and live happily ever after… My grandson Keitaro, may his soul rest in peace… When he was 4 years old, I saw him make a promise to this little girl. He told her they would enter Tokyo University together when they grew up, and that they would marry… That was the cutest thing I had ever seen in my life! …The realization of that marriage and that happy ending by means of this inn would have been the pinnacle of it all!"

"Then how did it go so wrong? How did that pure and innocent dream get so corrupted?" Retasu asked sadly…

"It _didn't_! What became corrupted is our modern society!" Hinata replied sternly. "This is no longer the world I grew up in. World War II changed everything, and we were forced to incorporate America's culture into our civilization. After that, the 60's came, and it became a world-wide trend to break every rule in the book just for fun! Romantic relationships were also affected. There is no longer any respect! Men are just going around having sex with anyone like they've regressed to their animal instincts!"

"Well… That's true, but still…" Retasu tried to object…

"Humanity today no longer believes in fairytales. Nowadays, people don't appreciate the Happily Ever After ending… Men are too busy with their own sexual needs to take their women's feelings into account!" Hinata ranted. "I saw so many girls… their hearts broken, shattered into a million pieces! Their tears, streaming endlessly into an infinite river where they were drowning in sorrow and despair! In order to stop this madness, a reversal of the traditional gender roles is needed! In order for those sweet girls to have their Happily Ever After, they needed not a princess, but a strong female warrior who would dominate her Prince Charming! …The little girl to whom my grandson made that promise in that fateful day… That girl's name was Naru Narusegawa. In order to have the image that my inn needed to become a beacon of hope for all women and girls once more, I needed Naru-chan to become a fierce tigress and take the reins in her relationship with my grandson!"

"Oh! She's getting to the part where I come in!" Mitsune said happily…

Back at the ruins, Ryou was explaining something to Minto, Bu-Ling and a now-awake Zakuro…

"What do you mean there was another Mew Mew before Ichigo?" Minto asked with disbelief…

"To be honest, I didn't know it until Keiichiro recently told me about it. We have you all numbered to easily keep track of you. For example, Retasu is Mew #03, Minto is Mew #02 and Ichigo is Mew #01… _but_ … at some point during my childhood, my father and Keiichiro were already working on the Mew project to repel the alien invasion, and a girl had volunteered to take part in the project after they discovered she was a compatible host for the DNA of the Japanese Red Fox. _That_ girl is Mew #00… Also known as Mitsune Konno…"

Meanwhile, at Hinata Inn, Mitsune pulled something out of her pocket…

"A Mew Pendant?" Retasu squealed in shock…

"That's right. I'm technically your senpai" Mitsune replied. "Though it took about a year for my powers to stabilize… Back then, the experiment went wrong and I turned into a full fox"

Mitsune then flashed back to the harsh days she spent as an actual fox. She was tired, wounded and hungry. That day, old Hinata was praying in front of the small shrine to the fox deity, the same one where Leon and Kanako would have fought to the death years later. While Hinata was praying, she saw poor little fox Mitsune come out of the bushes in that dire state and collapse right beside her…

"This must be a sign!" Hinata had said…

The old lady then took the little fox into her arms and back to her empty inn, where she nursed it back to health…

"Imagine my surprise when I saw that little fox turn into a human girl!" Hinata narrated as she flashed back to the time she walked into the room where she had left the fox and saw a younger and naked Mitsune in its place. "I thought I had encountered a benevolent youkai!"

"I owe my life to Hina-obaasan here" Mitsune said solemnly. "I would still do anything for her to this day"

"And so, I continued to raise this girl as if she were yet another of my grandchildren… And also asked her for an important favor: to make sure that my grandson Keitaro and the girl of her promise got married as I had planned. That's why I passed my inn to Keitaro-chan, while Mitsune-chan convinced Naru-chan to start living here… But a sacrifice was needed to turn Naru-chan into the tigress of a wife that I needed her to be… she needed to know what it's like to have your heart shattered by a man!"

"I took care of driving Seta-sensei away from her and disappear from her life without any goodbye. It was for her own good" Mitsune said…

"Do you realize how many lives were lost because of your plans?" Retasu cried. "Do you realize how many lives you've played with?"

"Sometimes when trying to change the world, sacrifices will have to be made. Sadly, I just about gave too much of my own with the deaths of my granddaughter and grandson" Hinata lamented…

"A war has no winners! This war has only hurt everybody, including you!" Retasu cried…

"Enough talk. Mitsune-chan, please be so kind to show our guest her room" Hinata said…

"With pleasure" Mitsune said, and took Retasu to the underground tunnels…

"Haruka-chan… That robot Dr. Seto built is going to arrive soon. Have everything prepared to welcome it" Hinata said…

"You can count on me, obaa-san" Haruka said, grabbing her whip…

"Our fairytale can still have a happy ending… Yes, there's still one princess left here that we can turn into a dominant queen…" Hinata said to herself…

While Haruka went to guard the inn's entrance, Mitsune threw the tied-up and gagged Retasu into a room in the underground tunnels. "Oh! I almost forgot!" Mitsune said before taking Retasu's Mew Pendant from her. "Gotta get rid of this" she said before she threw it into a hole in the wall, fairly big but not enough for Retasu's head or body to fit in it, and with her arms tied she wouldn't be able to use them to get to the pendant. "Just lay there quietly while we take care of your cyborg boyfriend" Mitsune added before she closed the door and locked it…

Meanwhile, Hinata went to see Shinobu in her room. Sarah was there treating Shinobu's wounds from the beating she received from Andr, and bringing her ice to hold onto her swollen face…

"What happened?" Hinata asked, horrified…

"Shinobu-chan failed to beat that Andr boy, and got beaten by him instead" Sarah replied…

"Don't worry, dearie. I know how we can fix that" Hinata said to Shinobu…

Leon had finally reached the hill where Hinata House was located and started running up the long stone stairs at full speed…

Mitsune smirked as she walked through the underground tunnels for one more stop. "Let the final battle begin" she said dramatically…

Leon finally reached the top of the hill and found Haruka waiting for him outside of the inn's entrance…


	37. Hell's gate open

"…Even _you_ are with them in this!" Leon said to Haruka, glaring at her with disappointment…

"That is correct…" Haruka replied. "Now it's your time for you to pay for murdering both of my cousins!"

Haruka lashed out at Leon with her whip, so fast that he could barely dodge it…

"I don't have time for this shit!" Leon said as he transformed his right arm into a cannon and started firing at Haruka, but she was expecting that and had already started to move nimbly to avoid the plasma shots, at the same time fighting back with skillful whip lashes. Soon she was able to tangle Leon's arm cannon with the whip. " _Dammit!_ " Leon yelled. Haruka then pulled the whip hard to bring Leon close and deliver punch to his face, knocking him down…

Meanwhile, at the underground tunnels below Hinata House, Mitsune decided to pay a visit to the cage where Andr was imprisoned…

"It's over, you won!" Andr said, clinging to the bars of the cage. "...You bitches destroyed everyone and everything I could ever care about! I hope that you're fucking happy!"

"Oh? How did you know I set your little bunker on fire with your kitty friends inside?" Mitsune asked with a smirk…

"My bunker's computer was connected wirelessly to the antenna on my robotic ear" Andr explained…

"In my opinion, it serves you right! _You_ created that cursed cyborg that destroyed our dream and the people important to us!" Mitsune replied, hiding anger behind her smile. "But no worries! We still have a way of making our dream work! You may say it's a Plan-B"

"Hah! Yeah, right! Let me guess, you're just going to force that thing that is wearing my ex-lover's face to be my new girlfriend! Not a fucking chance in hell, bitch! So, how about you just kill me and get it the fuck over with? I will not fall for your stupid little plot!" Andr yelled…

"My! You're pretty sagacious!" Mitsune praised Andr…

"Not a hard thing to figure out, really. It was obvious that bitch Naru was molding Shinobu-chan to be just like her, and I happen to be the same type of guy as Keitaro. It didn't take me much to put 2 and 2 together!" Andr said…

"That saves us a lot of explaining" Hinata said as she entered the room, bringing a reluctant Shinobu with her…

Meanwhile, the remaining few dozen Chimera Anima of Naru's army still roamed the city looking for victims, and the Mew Mews were not available to stop them…

" _Mercury Aqua Mirage!_ " Sailor Mercury shouted, summoning a globe of water that then split into several streams that shot toward all of her targets. Each of the affected Chimera Anima were engulfed in large globes of water, then each orb burst, killing the alien parasite inside each of the women and reverting them back permanently to human form and also knocking them out, making them easy to capture…

" _Mars Flame Sniper!_ " Sailor Mars shouted, creating a bow and arrow made of fire and shooting a single arrow at another group of Chimera Anima. The special fire purified and destroyed the alien parasites and rendered their hosts easy to capture as well…

" _Jupiter Oak Evolution!_ " Sailor Jupiter shouted, creating a column of swirling leaves that surrounded her before she sent them towards her targets. Again, another large group of Chimera Anima was purified and knocked out by this attack in a single shot…

" _Venus Power: Love Crescent Shower!_ " Sailor Venus shouted, launching a spell that purified the entire area, killing all the remaining alien parasites and knocking out their hosts as well…

Sailor Mercury checked with the blue visor that lowers from her tiara, and saw the last dots on the radar disappear completely after Sailor Venus's attack. "There. Those were the last ones"

"But where's Sailor Moon? She missed out on all the fun!" Sailor Venus said…

"What fun? We just cleaned up after our disciples! That klutz was lucky she didn't have to do this!" Sailor Mars complained…

Elsewhere in the city, Ichigo had already updated Masaya on the whole situation…

"I see… Professor Seta, of all people, was one of the masterminds behind all this… I would have never believed it" Masaya said…

"It's what that Sugu girl said to Retasu before she was killed. After that, Retasu relayed that information to the rest of us" Ichigo replied…

"Ichigo-chan… Can I ask you a favor?" Masaya asked…

"Anything for you, Masaya-kun" Ichigo replied…

"Go back home" Masaya said seriously…

Ichigo was not pleased to hear that. "No! Anything but that!"

"Ichigo-chan, please understand! I don't want to put your life at risk!" Masaya said…

"And let you put _your_ life at risk by fighting that Seta guy? What am I going to do if I lose you?" Ichigo replied, clinging to Masaya and starting to cry…

Masaya gently held Ichigo's head to his chest. "Ichigo-chan…"

"I don't want to hear it!" Ichigo interrupted as she lifted her gaze and looked into Masaya's eyes with determination. "I'm going with you and not even you can make me change my mind! ...The Tokyo Mew Mew have fought so hard… As their leader, I'm the one who has to make sure everyone survives to the end, _and that includes you_!"

Masaya hesitated, but there was no way he could say no to Ichigo. "Alright… Let's go put an end to this once and for all!"

Meanwhile, Leon rolled to the side to avoid Haruka's whip and then fired at her with his arm cannon. Haruka skillfully cut Leon's plasma shot in mid-trajectory with the whip…

"Get a load of _this!_ " Leon yelled as he rapid-fired with both arm cannons at once, putting Haruka into a pinch as she had a hard time blocking everything with her whip…

However, Leon was getting an alert from his body's systems that said "Warning: 25% battery left", and soon had to stop blasting because he knew he'd have more battles inside the building. Instead he opted for just charging frontally at Haruka with a scream and trying to get her with melee. With the speed granted by his cybernetics and some persistence he eventually managed to land a punch on Haruka and send her rolling back. However, Haruka stabilized herself and lashed at Leon with her whip, entangling his leg and then pulling to make him fall off. After that, Haruka screamed while pulling Leon hard and getting him off the ground, smashing him against the nearby trees with enough force to break them…

Meanwhile, in the tunnels below the house, Retasu was working out how she'd get out of the locked room she was thrown in by Mitsune. She would not get out without her Mew Pendant, but the hole in which Mitsune threw the pendant was too small for Retasu's head, much less her body to crawl through. Besides, her hands were tied to her back. That only left one option: Retasu took off her right shoe and stuck her foot inside the hole to try to retrieve the pendant with her toes…

That was not an easy task. Retasu's beautiful and dainty foot had to fumble about since she couldn't see exactly where the pendant had landed. This was further complicated by the presence of a turtle (an organic one this time), who got curious about Retasu's foot and started to lick it…

" _Mmmmph-hmhmhmhmhm!_ " the poor bound and gagged green-haired beauty screamed and laughed, startled by the wet tickly surprise. Nevertheless, she had to endure the tickling and persevere until her toes were able to pin the Mew Pendant down, at which point she could pull her beautiful foot out of the hole and drag the pendant back to her…

There was still the problem of the gag covering her mouth, since her lips needed to make contact with the pendant for her to transform. But first, Retasu looked into the hole to see what had tickled her lovely foot. She saw the small turtle inside, which slowly crawled out of the hole and into the room. Retasu decided to turn around, lie on the floor and rotate her head so the knot of the gag was near the turtle's beak. The curious turtle, wanting to find out what that was, started biting the knot. Eventually the gag was undone and her mouth was free. "Thanks a lot, Turtle-san" she politely thanked the animal…

With her lips free, Retasu got on her knees, bent over and kissed the Mew Pendant on the floor, allowing her to transform. " _Mew Mew Lettuce! Metamorphose!_ " she shouted…

She was still tied up, though, but now she could take care of that. " _Lettustanets!_ " she shouted, causing the oyster-shaped castanets to materialize in her tied-up hands. She only needed to be able to move her fingers to release water with high enough pressure to cut the ropes. Now free of the binds and able to stand up, she used another water blast to bust the locked door and escape the room. The shoe she took off earlier was left there in the room, where the turtle promptly grabbed it with its beak and took it away…

It was already past midnight and the streets were empty. Ichigo and Masaya were the only ones walking there, and they could see professor Seta's house in the distance. The man was standing at the entrance as if waiting for them…

"Professor Seta…" Masaya said, glaring seriously at him…

"What are you kids doing out this late in the night?" Seta said calmly and with a smile, the lights of the street causing a reflection on his lens, giving them that effect that made the glasses look all white…

"Professor, we know of your involvement in the recent Chimera Anima attack" Masaya informed him…

"You do? …Well, that's unfortunate" Seta replied…

"Why did you do this? How could you mastermind such a horrible massacre? Do you realize how many people died because of you?" Ichigo yelled at Seta…

"Ever since its humble beginnings, mankind's history was put into motion by war. Many lives were sacrificed, but in the end it was for the greater good of a kingdom or empire. Even in this modern day, that has not changed" Seta replied calmly…

"Just get to the point!" Ichigo yelled impatiently…

"Hinata House is a beacon of hope for all females in Japan, and my disciples Keitaro and Naru were going to be at the front of it. With Naru being the dominating half instead of Keitaro, she would inspire women and girls to start a revolution and invert the gender roles that this country has held so rigidly for so many centuries. Women would rise and history would once more be put in motion, fighting for a fairer world in which the weak gender would have a better chance at a happy life. The kind of fair world I want my wife and daughter to live in" Seta explained…

"The saddest part of it all is that you've done such a horrible thing for the good of your loved ones… Just like me when I was trying to destroy humanity five years ago…" Masaya said with sadness in his eyes…

"Ah, yes… I remember that alien invasion. You must have been the aliens' leader. What's your name again? Deep Blue, I think?" Seta said with a little smile…

Masaya started manifesting an aura of blue ki again. "I am _not_ Deep Blue!" he declared before he unexpectedly transformed. His hair turned golden, his ears grew huge (like the aliens' ears) and he regained his blue outfit and sword…

"The Blue Knight!" Ichigo said with surprise, blushing as she hadn't seen Masaya like that in years. "I thought you had lost your powers…"

"Me too. They woke up again during my fight with Motoko-neesan" the Blue Knight replied…

"So… Have anything to say in man's defense?" Seta asked…

"Not much… I know this world is full of selfish people but so was the aliens' world, Deep Blue being a selfish man himself… However, killing everybody means also killing the good men who do treat their wives with respect!" the Blue Knight answered…

"That's right! Masaya-kun has always been nice to me! I have literally _nothing_ to complain about him! Rather than a world where woman dominates man, I'd prefer living in a world where Masaya-kun and I can be equals!" Ichigo said…

"I agree with Ichigo-chan!" the Blue Knight said…

"A young couple that agree with each other so sincerely? What a rare sight… Not even my beloved wife and I had a relationship this sweet… It's almost _sickening_! You don't even appear to be real people! Couples in real life fight all the time and are always disagreeing on everything! That's the charm of it! The effort put into the relationship and the hard-earned heart of the other person! That's what makes the marriage into a grand victory!" Seta said…

"I'm sorry, but I can't accept your idea of a world where one gender always has to dominate the other" the Blue Knight said as he got into battle stance…

"We're going to stop you!" Ichigo said, taking her Mew Pendant. " _Mew Mew Ichigo! Metamorphose!_ " she shouted, kissing the pendant and doing her whole transformation before going into fighting stance as well…

"What a classic scenario! Once again, history is put into motion by the clash of two very different ideals!" Seta said before he adjusted his glasses and went into fighting stance too. "Whoever wins gets to write history as he sees fit… But who is it going to be?"

"What are you waiting for, Shinobu? Hurry up and smack that pervert on the head! Just like last time!" Mitsune said. The door of the cage was opened, Shinobu was inside, forced to face Andr, a frying pan forced into her hand. Andr stared at Shinobu coldly, without saying a word…

"…No" Shinobu replied…

"C'mon! Think of what Naru would do! You gonna let that pervert touch your boob?" Mitsune said…

"This is not right!" Shinobu said as she turned to look at Mitsune…

"Of course it is right! You're a weak, dainty woman and he's a strong, tough man! There's nothing wrong with you hitting him with all your strength! It's not going to hurt him!" Mitsune insisted…

Shinobu turned around fully. " _That is not love!_ " she screamed…

"Heh! What's this? Afraid to do what you fucking did to me before, bitch? Come on, let's try and kill me this time!" Andr yelled at Shinobu, putting his hands out, dropping any chance for a defense…

"See? He _wants_ you to do it!" Mitsune said. "Showing obsessive hate for somebody… There's no more obvious indicator of love than that! You show him constant hate in order to hide your love for him! Hate is love! Isn't that what Naru taught you?"

" _No!_ " Shinobu screamed as she threw away the frying pan, leaving her with no method to attack Andr with. "If you love your significant other, you don't need to keep him in check! You love him, therefore you trust him!" she quoted what Retasu told her…

" _Trust a man?_ Seriously?" Mitsune said, scoffing at what Shinobu was saying…

"The man you love is _not_ your enemy! When you love someone, you comfort and protect him! Love is to make the other person happy and expect nothing in exchange!" Shinobu shouted…

"Who put that into your head? Was it the girl with the lettuce hair? The one I recently captured?" Mitsune said, shocking Shinobu. "She ain't coming to help. I'll dispose of her once we've dealt with the cyborg boy"

" _You stay the hell away from her!_ " Andr replied in rage, grabbing ahold of Shinobu by the neck, almost lifting her off the ground and out of one of her shoes. "Hurt me! Kill me! Do whatever you fucking want to me! But leave Retasu-chan out of this! You hurt the woman my friend loves and I will make sure to kill the both of you with my own bare hands!"

"Mitsune-chan, _stop him_! If he kills Shinobu-chan, our plans will get ruined!" Hinata screamed…

Mitsune promptly kicked Andr in the gut, forcing him to let go of Shinobu and leaving both of them squirming in pain on the floor…

"You kids leave me no choice…" Mitsune said, searching in her pocket and taking out a small jar with a Parasite Alien inside it…


	38. Farewell, Blue Knight

Meanwhile, at the streets of Kanagawa, the Blue Knight had been sent back by a powerful punch from Seta, and barely managed to regain balance and land back onto his feet, then he had to catch Ichigo as she got blown away as well…

"He's pretty strong for a human!" the Blue Knight admitted while he looked at Seta, who was still completely undamaged, holding his battle stance as the wind blew in the area…

Meanwhile, Leon got slammed onto the ground by Haruka using her whip…

"I will never forgive you" Haruka declared grimly before she pulled the whip again and threw Leon against a nearby rock…

Back inside the tunnels below Hinata House, Mitsune opened the jar and took the Parasite Alien out…

"Are you _insane_? You think that one of your modified parasites will make her love me more?" Andr yelled, shocked. "Besides, I thought that Leon destroyed all the parasites in Su's lab!"

"He did. We ran out of modified Alien Parasites long ago… But _this_ one… This one is not modified. This is the original Keitaro found in those ruins, the one all the clones came from" Mitsune replied…

Shinobu was just getting up when Mitsune crouched down and put her hand near Shinobu's chest…

"I think the technique that the aliens used to extract a human soul was more or less _like this_ …" Mitsune said calmly. Andr saw a ball of white light get extracted from inside Shinobu's chest, and then the poor girl's body went limp …

At that moment, time seemed to go on slow motion for Andr as he witnessed in utter horror how the girl he loved dropped dead and hit the floor. There it was, the one being that Andr loved most over everything else, gone, just like that. He now had truly lost everything. An uncontrollable flood of tears filled both of his eyes as they suddenly recovered all the emotion that he had repressed…

" _The hell?_ Didn't you guys need her alive for your stupid plans to work?" Andr cried, shocked and backing away from Shinobu's limp body…

"The unmodified parasite is not as easy to use as our version. It can't fuse with humans directly, so the aliens utilized a technique to remove the person's soul and fuse the parasite with it instead… _Just like this_ " Mitsune said before she brought Shinobu's soul to the Alien Parasite…

The jellyfish-like parasite proceeded to invade Shinobu's soul, taking the form of a woman-shaped cat beast with blue fur, Shinobu's naked figure, hair and breasts, and the face of a kitty. Those razor-sharp claws, however, were not something to take lightly, and those fangs looked pretty painful as well…

"Have fun, you two!" Mitsune said before she and Hinata walked away, leaving Andr at the mercy of the cat-shaped Chimera Anima created from Shinobu's soul…

"N... no… th… this can't be how you are... Shi… Shinobu-chan…" Andr said, his tears raining on the cold stone floor…

When Mitsune and Hinata went to the room where Retasu was locked up, they found the room empty and the door busted. "Darn it! The hostage escaped!" Mitsune said…

"We have no time to look for her! I don't know how long Haruka-chan is going to last against that mechanical abomination!" Hinata said. "Go upstairs and get ready to hold him off!"

Meanwhile, right outside of the house, Leon was so badly battered that his synthetic skin had rips all over it, showing his mechanical body which also looked pretty damaged, not to mention the bleeding wounds on the organic half of his body. He nevertheless got up with difficulty even after receiving a beating from Haruka…

"Why don't you _die_ already?" Haruka shouted before she threw a whiplash full-force…

Leon tried to defend himself with his left arm, getting it entangled. However, just before Haruka could pull him again, Leon took aim with his other arm cannon and shot at Haruka's right hand. The plasma shot shattered the poor woman's hand into a bloody stump, forcing her to let go of the whip. Leon then pulled with his entangled arm and threw Haruka's whip off the hill…

" _I can still beat you up!_ " Haruka screamed as she charged towards Leon, but Leon just shot her through the chest, right as Sarah was coming out of the front door…

The poor American girl had to watch her adoptive mother drop dead in front of her eyes. Sarah's eyes filled with tears as an uncontrollable rage invaded her. " _You killed my moooooom!_ " Sarah screamed as she attempted to attack Leon in a blind rage…

Startled, Leon turned and fired without even knowing who was about to attack him. The shot pierced cleanly through Sarah's chest. Leon stared in horror at the corpse of the 16-year-old girl he had just murdered…

"Now I just killed a mother and a daughter…" Leon said sadly as he stared at his own arm cannon. " _Fuck_ this shit. Some 'hero' I am"

Tired and wanting to get all this over with, Leon kicked down the front door of Hinata Inn. His cyber body was badly damaged from having fought both Keitaro and Haruka in the same night, even sparking at one spot, and his battery indicator was about 15%, but he needed to soldier on to rescue his lover and his best friend…

At the streets, the Blue Knight screamed as he charged against the enemy again. His sword clashed with Seta's fist, causing a shockwave that wrecked their surroundings more than it damaged the combatants. Both jumped away from each other…

"Whoops… We're too strong for this city. Mind if we take this fight to the ruins?" Seta offered…

"We've got no choice. We don't want any other people caught in the crossfire, right Ichigo?" the Blue Knight said…

The three quickly ran all the way to the ruins and stopped once far enough from the rest of the city, where they would resume their battle. Again, the two clashed fiercely. Ichigo took a blocking stance and screamed while the shockwave generated from the two men's clashing attacks swept everything else around them in a large radius. The two jumped back from each other before charging again with incredible speed. The Blue Knight's blue energy slashes proved as powerful as Motoko's, but Seta easily dodged each one and palm-thrust the air so hard he pushed it onto the Blue Knight and sent him against a rock…

Ichigo shouted as she swiftly attacked with a barrage of fast kicks with agility worthy of a cat, but Seta was able to easily parry and block it all before punching her away. However, Ichigo instantly stabilized herself in the air and landed just fine, although she had to wipe the blood from her mouth right after…

The Blue Knight charged again, trying to cut Seta. The professor dodged every slash carefully until the Blue Knight did a vertical cut. Seta stopped the sword with just his bare hands, although the sheer force of the attack sunk his feet slightly onto the ground…

"It's been a while since I faced an opponent this strong" Seta said with a smile, he then kicked the Blue Knight on the side and sent him rolling on the floor, making him let go of his sword due to the way Seta was holding the blade…

" _Masaya-kun!_ " Ichigo screamed…

Seta examined the blade. "For an alien sword this isn't very different from what I've seen here on Earth, but it's still pretty well-crafted… Let's t do this: If I win, I get to keep your sword" he said before he threw the sword gently at the Blue Knight to allow him to recover it…

Back at the dungeon, Andr was holding Shinobu's lifeless body, not moving at all. The blue female cat monster slowly and elegantly moved towards him with killing intent. "Please wait for me… Shinobu-chan…" Andr said as he just closed his eyes and waited for the end to come at the hands of the cat monster in front of him, ready to end his life…

Suddenly, the monster hesitated. It seemed to be struggling with itself. "An… dr… -kun…" it managed to say before it inevitably swiped with its claw, knocking Andr away from Shinobu's body and leaving a bleeding scratch-shaped scar on Andr's body. The Chimera Anima moved to finish Andr off, suddenly jumping to pounce on him with its mouth open and aiming its fangs at his throat…

" _Ribbon: Lettuce Rush!_ " Retasu shouted, blasting the cat monster in mid-air and sending it crashing against the bars of the cage…

"Ugh... no, don't bother Retasu-chan… It's best you just leave me to go… Just get out of here, please… have a life with Leon" Andr said weakly as he looked at the new scar on his chest, and then back at Retasu. All the life was gone from Andr's eyes as he lost his will to go on anymore…

"I'm not leaving you, Dr. Seto! I will save you and Maehara-san!" Retasu declared with determination…

However, the cat Chimera Anima soon counterattacked, slashing Retasu and knocking her down, tearing a scar onto her body as well. Retasu still felt the pain of the wound of her battle with Su, and was having a hard time getting up…

"Please let me accept my fate, Retasu-chan… There's nothing left for me anymore. Everything and everyone I cared about is either changed for the worst or destroyed" Andr cried…

"I am not giving up, Dr. Seto! I'm going to save you and Maehara-san so you can one day marry and have a happy life together!" Retasu said. She then dodged another slash from the Chimera Anima and counterattacked with a kick that knocked it back a few steps…

Meanwhile, Leon kicked down another door inside Hinata Inn, this one taking to the dining room. Grandma Hinata was sitting in there, expecting him, with a lit candle on the small table by her side…

"Who are you?" Leon asked, surprised…

"I am Hinata Urashima, founder of Hinata Inn… Haruka-chan and Sarah-chan were murdered by your hand, I see… Such a mechanical abomination that Dr. Seto created… monsters like you _should not even exist!_ " the old lady said. "Mitsune-chan! Dispose of this monstrosity for me!"

Hiding nearby, Mitsune took out her own Mew Pendant and kissed it. She then did a whole transformation sequence of her own, a darkness-elemental one. Her body became naked and shrouded in darkness that transformed into the various pieces of her Mew Mew clothes, which were black, making her look a little like a dominatrix. She then sprouted fox ears and one fox tail, which then opened in a fan formation until it became nine tails. Finally, she opened her fox-like eyes. In Mitsune's hand materialized a magical-looking black writing pen, and then she came out of her hiding spot, showing herself to a shocked Leon…

"What? Never saw such a sexy girl before?" Mitsune joked, looking at him smugly with her open fox-like eyes…

Without a word, Leon attacked Mitsune. Meanwhile, back outside at the ruins, Ichigo and the Blue Knight attacked in tandem, giving Seta a difficult time blocking and parrying it all, yet Seta managed to find an opening and repel them both…

"Phew! You guys synchronize way too well for my liking! I guess even in battle you're still a couple" Seta praised his opponents. He was soaked in sweat from the effort, and had to take his shirt off, showing a strong, hardened and muscular body. Ichigo had a slight nosebleed seeing that. As a final touch, Seta took off his glasses and stored them in his pocket so he didn't get them broken in his face…

"He looks like he came out of a JoJo's Bizarre Adventure manga" the Blue Knight commented…

"I'm going seriously now. Be proud, for nobody has pushed me this far in many years" Seta declared while going onto battle stance once more…

"Ichigo-chan… Run away" the Blue Knight said…

" _Never!_ Either we win this together or we die together!" Ichigo replied…

"I see…" the Blue Knight said. "In that case, wait for my signal"

The Blue Knight and Professor Seta shouted loudly as they charged at each other full-force, their powerful attacks devastating the area even further, even changing the landscape. One attack from Seta pushed the Blue Knight back…

" _Now, Ichigo-chan!_ " the Blue Knight yelled…

" _Ribbon: Strawberry Surprise!_ " Ichigo shouted, shining her intensely bright light at Seta, blinding him. This gave Masaya an opening to run towards Seta and slash him diagonally with all his might…

The Blue Knight was breathing hard from the effort, his sword drenched in Seta's blood. However, once the light died down, he and Ichigo confirmed with horror that the cut inflicted on Seta's strong body was not as deep as they had calculated, at least not deep enough to mortally wound him…

"His body is too strong! Just _what is_ this guy?" the Blue Knight said…

And things were only bound to get even more nightmarish from here. Seta went into a stance resembling a samurai about to unsheathe his sword. Of course, he wasn't carrying a sword, but his ki was starting to gather into an energy ball between the palms of both of his hands. It was by this point that the Blue Knight realized he and Ichigo were going to die…

" _Ichigo-chan! Run!_ " he screamed at her…

But Seta would not give them time for that. With a very quick movement he pointed both palms at them and projected a big and powerful energy beam of ki, which looked more powerful even than Leon's Charged Buster Cannon. The attack hit both the Blue Knight and Ichigo, making them scream from the intense pain. And if that didn't kill them, the subsequent explosion with a radius of about 10 meters would…

Seta was breathing hard, covered in sweat. Apparently it took a lot of physical effort for him to fire that technique. The smoke from the explosion cleared. The Blue Knight and Ichigo were lying on the center of a crater, not moving…

The Blue Knight slowly opened his eyes, barely conscious. "Ichigo-chan…"

But Ichigo did not wake up. She did not move at all, and didn't seem to be even breathing…

"Ichigo-chan… No… Please don't die on me…" the Blue Knight said, starting to cry…

"It's been so long since the last time I had to resort to that technique… You're the strongest opponent I've faced in a long while… This fight was very fun" Seta said…

The Blue Knight crawled towards Ichigo's limp body and hugged it tightly, silent for a while…

"…Fun? …People die in this kind of thing, and you call it _fun_?" the Blue Knight said calmly before he gave Seta a death glare…

The Blue Knight then put Ichigo's body in a more comfortable position, using a nearby flat stone to serve as a pillow before he got up. The Blue Knight couldn't even walk properly from how badly wounded he was, but he nevertheless walked towards Seta, an aura of blue ki getting increasingly more intense around his body…

"You really want to kill me so bad you're going to overload yourself? That's suicide" Seta said…

"I was born to protect Ichigo-chan" the Blue Knight said. "Without her, I have no reason to be alive…"

The Blue Knight and Seta prepared for a final clash, and charged at each other while screaming and attacking with all their might. Their clash resulted in a powerful shockwave that shattered the earth around them and stirred the wind. It seemed as if a natural disaster were occurring in the area…

Seta had successfully buried his hand into the Blue Knight's chest, killing him. The transformation wore off as the corpse went back to Masaya Aoyama's form and dropped dead…

"You really were a worthy opponent… I'm happy that my last fight was such a tough one… Congratulations" Seta said. The Blue Knight's sword had pierced through his heart and was still buried into his chest. Seta started to fall backwards as he exhaled his last breath, his dead body hitting the barren ground with a thud…

Leon and Mitsune were fighting inside Hinata House, their powerful punches and kicks breaking the walls and making the area bigger, all while old Hinata watched serenely…

"That's all? You're so badly damaged you can't even fight properly!" Mitsune mocked Leon while tracing lines of darkness with her pen-shaped weapon, which instantly moved forward and hit Leon, further damaging him. "I'm going to write the scene of your death!"

Meanwhile, Retasu got sent rolling against the bars of the cage by another slash from the blue cat Chimera Anima. She tried to get up, but the pain was too much and she collapsed…

"It's useless, Retasu-chan… My Shinobu-chan is gone forever. Just run away and let me die…" Andr cried…

"That's not true, Dr. Seto!" Retasu said as she started slowly getting back up again. "Maehara-san is still alive!"

Andr's eyes opened wide in surprise…


	39. The crushed ambition

"Shinobu-chan is still alive? But _how?_ Her body is lying there! Her _soul_ has been taken away!" Andr said…

"We can recover Maehara-san's soul, Dr. Seto… We just need to defeat the Chimera Anima first!" Retasu replied, managing to finally stand back up…

"But _how_? You're too wounded!" Andr said…

"I know… But I won't give up!" Retasu replied as she attacked the Chimera Anima once again…

Meanwhile, Leon still struggled in his fight with Mitsune. His attempts at punching her leading to nothing as she just swayed unpredictably and hit back hard in awkward angles, knocking Leon down. By this point, not only were Leon's clothes tattered, but so was his artificial skin, showing a lot of the robotic part of his body, which also looked damaged…

"Surprise! You didn't expect _me_ to be such a good fighter, huh?" Mitsune said mockingly…

"How the hell…?" Leon muttered, struggling to get up…

"Drunken Boxing… That's the martial art I practice. The entire thing is designed for drunken people, like me. Opponents can't read my moves!" Mitsune gloated…

Leon continued to attempt to get up, only for his cybernetic body to start malfunctioning. "Dammit…"

"Yeah… _That_ 's the problem with machines! They can't adapt to unforeseen situations like the human body can. Once the machine's broken, that's it" Mitsune said, preparing her pen-shaped weapon to finish Leon off…

"Goddammit! _Get up!_ " Leon yelled, continuing to struggle. He soon surprised Hinata and Mitsune when he managed to stand up after all…

"My God! Is there any way to stop this infernal robot?" Hinata wondered out loud…

"I'm a _cyborg_!" Leon yelled as he attacked Mitsune again…

The fox girl smirked as she swayed unpredictably once again to catch Leon off guard. However, Leon made a feint this time and only pretended to throw a high attack when in reality he kicked at Mitune's legs right as she was dancing around, tripping her. Mitsune still stopped her own fall with her hand and flipped back to her feet, but she looked mildly surprised…

"Oh! _Now_ I get it! A cyborg! Part-human, part-machine! How could I not see it before? Since you still have a human mind, you can adapt your strategies to deal with unexpected scenarios! …But humanity comes with its own disadvantages, you know…" Mitsune said…

Mitsune then proceeded to attack the bleeding wounds in the human part of Leon's body, paralyzing him with pain as she further beat him up…

"You see, the weak point of a cyborg, physically speaking, is his human parts. Anyone who has written a fiction with cyborgs knows that! And if that isn't enough, I can always exploit your feelings. I've become quite good at that over the years" Mitsune said…

Leon got another warning from the systems of his cybernetic body, this one saying "Caution: 10% battery left. Recharging is highly recommended". Leon ignored the warning and fired his arm cannon at Mitsune, who just dodged the plasma shots and wrote more lines of darkness in the air to shoot them at Leon, damaging him even further…

"What if I told you that your lovely lettuce-haired girlfriend is already _dead_?" Mitsune said, causing Leon's eyes to open wide in shock. "That's right! She still hasn't recovered from the battle at the city, and I left a Chimera Anima down there where she and your little scientist friend are! It's very likely that both your love interest and your best friend are rotting corpses by now"

However, instead of getting depressed and losing the will to live, Leon reacted with rage as he stomped the floor hard while getting up, causing a small quake, and gave Mitsune a furious death glare. "You'd better pray for them to be alive… _Or I'm going to rip your tails off and beat you to death with them!_ "

Meanwhile, a wounded and battered Retasu continued to fight against the Chimera Anima that was created from Shinobu's soul, but it looked like a losing battle. After taking another slash and getting yet another bleeding wound, Retasu failed to stand back up. The Chimera Anima moved to finish her off…

At that moment, Andr stepped in and stood between the two to act as a meat shield. "I'm the one you want! Just kill me and get this over with!" he cried. "I'm tired of fighting in this hopeless war against the Hinata Inn… I just want to die already so I can finally stop suffering!" he added as the tears ran down his cheeks…

Again, the Chimera Anima seemed to hesitate. "An… dr… -kun…" it said, as if Shinobu's soul were making a great effort to communicate with Andr, even under the Parasite Alien's influence. "…Kill… me…"

"Shinobu-chan?" Andr said, recognizing Shinobu's voice inside of the beast, watching as she struggled to hold the Chimera Anima off and delay Andr's death…

Back to the inn's first floor, Leon screamed madly as he attacked Mitsune in seemingly blind rage, which only made it even easier for her to dodge his attacks and counter him. A kick from the fox girl sent Leon crashing through a wall…

"I know your type. You're one of those that fly into a blind rage at the slightest provocation. Much like Naru, actually. You guys are the easiest to defeat in a fight, just provoke you a little and you start blindly throwing attacks in the opponent's general direction, too impatient to properly calculate your moves" Mitsune said, advancing on Leon…

Leon attempted to get up, but he was badly damaged both in his human and cyber parts. He could not get up. Victorious, Mitsune stepped on Leon's badly damaged body, causing him to scream in pain…

"You caused us so many losses… Our friends killed, our plans ruined… but we can still salvage it" Mitsune said, showing some anger at Leon as she enjoyed stomping hard on him…

"That's right, Mitsune-chan… Shinobu-chan and our little scientist friend are going to become the next Naru-chan and Keitaro-chan. Are you hearing that, you cursed piece of tin?" Hinata said…

In the underground cell, Shinobu's soul gave in and the Chimera Anima threw a slash at Andr with all its might. That would surely rip him apart in one fell swoop…

Retasu suddenly got up, screaming as she stood between Andr and the Chimera Anima and conjured her most powerful blast of high-pressure water, practically a miniature tsunami, crashing with all its weight on the cat monster and slamming it hard against the back wall of the cell they were in…

The effort was so great that it made Retasu lose her transformation, reverting back to her civilian clothes minus one shoe (the one she took off during her escape from the room), and with the wounds of the battle still in her body. However, the Chimera Anima struggled to get back up and actually managed to do so despite its wounds. It all seemed lost as the monster weakly stumbled its way towards the defenseless Andr and Retasu, determined to finish them off…

But then, the Chimera Anima disintegrated, and the Alien Parasite became separated from Shinobu's soul. However, Masha was not there to eat up the Alien Parasite, so Retasu took off her remaining shoe and slapped the parasite downwards with it as if it were a bug, bringing it down to the floor, where she squatted down and continued to pummel the parasite with her shoe until it became a crushed mess on the stone floor. Retasu was breathing hard, exhausted from the whole ordeal…

While Andr carried Shinobu's body to Retasu, she stood up and gently took Shinobu's soul with her hands, taking it back to Shinobu's chest and letting her re-enter her body. Shinobu slowly opened her eyes. "Andr-kun?" she said weakly as Andr's face was the first thing she saw upon awakening. Andr hugged Shinobu tightly and cried…

At the first floor, Leon had finally stopped moving and screaming. It looked like the end of the line for him. Mitsune finally stopped stomping him and turned around, confidently walking away…

"Well, that takes care of it, Hina-obaasan! Now we can carry out our plans unimpeded!" Mitsune said happily…

But then Mitsune unexpectedly found herself hindered. She looked down to see that Leon had crawled and grabbed her by the foot…

"Let go! Why won't you stay dead?" Mitsune said, trying to shake Leon off but finding herself unable to do so…

"I came here to rescue Retasu-chan and Andr… I refuse to fail this mission!" Leon replied…

"They're _dead_! And soon you'll meet them in the afterlife!" a very annoyed Mitsune said as she shot more lines of darkness with her magic pen at Leon, still unable to make him let go…

"I'm going to save Retasu-chan and Andr even if it's the last thing I ever do!" Leon declared…

"You're _annoying!_ " Mitsune said as she finally kicked Leon away, causing him to slam against another wall. She angrily walked towards him and started beating him to death. "I _can't stand_ the likes of you! Brainlessly continuing to press forward regardless of the situation, stubborn until the very last breath! That kind of mindset only works in anime! To succeed in real life you make calculated moves and have others do the dirty work for you whenever it's possible! In real life, you need _a brain_!" she yelled while punching him, and then grabbed Leon by the neck, ready to finish him off…

"…Maybe you're right" Leon said weakly and with a smirk, suddenly putting the mouth of his arm cannon at Mitsune's chest, energy accumulating in it. Mitsune noticed it too late…

Leon released a Charged Buster Cannon shot, but not at its maximum size. However, it was big enough to burn through Mitsune's body. Mitsune dropped dead with a big hole in her chest, her image reflected in Hinata's horrified eyes…

"Mitsune-chan… Not you too…" Hinata thought, starting to cry…

"I don't need to charge my Buster Cannon all the way to the maximum… A mid-charged shot is not as powerful, but it's enough to kill even a person with superpowers, and it's faster to prepare anyway" Leon explained, although rather pointlessly because his dead enemy couldn't hear him anymore…

Something weird happened then. Mitsune's body did not revert back to human form upon death, instead turning into a full fox form, as if that had been her true form all along. Hinata stared at the little dead fox, her tears streaming down her face…

Leon got up, slowly walking towards Hinata, and pointed his arm cannon at her. "I only have 5% energy left… but it's more than enough to destroy you, old woman"

"Don't worry about that… My days were numbered anyway. Back before I started this whole plot, the doctor had said I had less than three months left… I just wanted to be able to die in peace knowing that my inn would continue to be the hope of all the females in Japan long after I was gone… But now all is lost…" Hinata said…

Saying that, Hinata weakly reached for the lit candle beside her and knocked it down onto the carpet, starting a fire…

"This inn was my entire life… It's only appropriate for me to die with it…" Hinata said weakly with her last breath, dying of natural causes right there where she was sitting…

Because the inn was made of mostly wood, the fire was quick to spread. Leon didn't bother looking for an underground entrance. He just punched the floor hard enough to break it and jumped down. He ran through the subterranean hallways in search for the people he came to rescue, eventually getting lucky and finding the cell where they all were…

"Leon-san!" Retasu exclaimed…

Leon and Retasu hugged each other. "…There's no time! The inn is on fire! We gotta get the fuck out of here!" Leon said…

Shinobu was horrified. "What happened to Hinata-obaasan and the others?"

"They're all dead! We've got no time to chat! Come on!" Leon hurried them…

Leon, Retasu and Andr started to run looking for an exit, but Andr soon stopped when he realized Shinobu was not following him…

Running through the burning building, Retasu and Leon barely managed to make it outside. The inn was engulfed in flames and looked like it was going to collapse at any second…

"Where's Dr. Seto and Maehara-san?" Retasu asked, horrified that she didn't see them around…

"… _That idiot!_ " Leon screamed before he ran back into the burning inn…

" _Leon-san! No!_ " Retasu screamed, but it was too late…

Andr calmly walked up to Shinobu. The subterranean hallways were already feeling the effects of the inn's destruction as they started to crumble around Andr and Shinobu. Shinobu was on her knees, crying. Andr kneeled beside her…

"Everyone is dead…" Shinobu cried. "Su-chan, Naru-senpai, Keitaro-senpai… Everyone is gone…"

Andr hugged Shinobu gently and comfortingly. "It's alright, Shinobu-chan… You're not alone… You won't die alone… I will be with you in the afterlife… Together forever…" Andr said sweetly to her, embracing his beloved as they both waited for their inevitable deaths…

"I'm okay with the together forever part, but the part about _dying_ sounds pretty stupid to me!" Leon said suddenly as he grabbed both Andr and Shinobu, carrying one with each arm, before hurrying back to the exit…

Retasu waited outside of the burning inn, worried sick. The sun was rising over the horizon, and Retasu's friends started to arrive at the place. Minto, Bu-Ling, Zakuro, Ryou, and the Sailor Senshi that were with them, they all arrived and stood with Retasu, watching the burning building and waiting for Leon to come out, since at this point it was too risky to enter…

The building was already crumbling and the burning pieces of wood that fell from above and blocked the path forced Leon to look for another way out as he carried Andr and Shinobu. His systems gave him another warning. "Danger: 3% battery left"

Leon's battery drained rapidly as he struggled and looked for a way out. "Danger: 2% battery left!"

Leon finally reached the entrance hallway of the inn, and started running towards the front door. All he had to do is make it to the door and it would all be over…

" _Danger:_ 1% battery left!"

When the system made that warning, Leon realized he wasn't going to make it. He then uttered a loud scream and threw Shinobu out of the building through the front door, soon throwing Andr out as well. After that, his cybernetic body ran out of power and he couldn't move any longer. At that very moment, the inn finally collapsed into a pile of burning debris, with Leon inside…

" _Leon-saaaaaaan!_ " Retasu cried…

Ichigo opened her eyes to find herself still alive, with a familiar figure leaning over her. That person's hands were gently placed on Ichigo's chest with a glowing healing light in them…

"Usagi-oneesan?" Ichigo asked…

Sailor Moon smiled at her student. "Thank goodness, you're still alive, Ichigo-chan… You've grown so strong… I'm proud of you"

But Ichigo soon got up in a hurry. " _Masaya-kun!_ " she said as she ran towards her fiancé's body to check on him. She started crying when she realized he was dead, and hugged his body tightly…

"I'm sorry… By the time I arrived, you were barely alive, but he was already…" Sailor Moon said sadly…

" _Masaya-kuuuuun!_ " Ichigo cried loudly, her voice echoing in the dawn…

"Don't give up Ichigo-chan! Did you forget _that_ spell I taught you?" Sailor Moon said…

" _That_ spell?" Ichigo said, looking back at Sailor Moon with her teary eyes, knowing perfectly what she was talking about…

"Yes… It's the only way to save your beloved" Sailor Moon replied…


	40. Make this love last forever

Ichigo let Masaya's body lay on the ground, got on top of it and hugged it warmly in preparation for the spell that would save him…

"Remember, Ichigo-chan… Love means that you want somebody else to be happy, regardless of how it would affect you personally" Sailor Moon reminded her disciple…

"I know…" Ichigo said…

"Do you love your man enough to give up everything for him?" Sailor Moon asked…

"Yes… Yes I do!" Ichigo replied without hesitation, her warm tears falling on Masaya's face…

"Then go ahead" Sailor Moon said, closing her eyes and praying for the best…

Ichigo kissed Masaya's lips with so much love that a light started to shine between their lips. Ichigo's own life force began flowing from her body to Masaya's through their lips. The kiss was long, and it drained Ichigo's energy so much that her magical girl clothes started to vanish and she changed back to civilian form. Her cat ears and tail also started to shrink until they disappeared entirely…

"To love someone is to be able give up everything for them… You're giving up your powers as a magical girl to save him, but that's a small price to pay for the years of happiness that you two have ahead of you…" Sailor Moon thought to herself. "I knew I made the right choice when I made you my successor"

Only when Ichigo became completely depowered did Masaya finally open his eyes, his wounds closed and his life restored…

"Ichigo-chan?" Masaya said weakly with a smile, causing him to be welcomed back into life with cuddles and kisses from his beloved fiancée…

Sailor Mercury used her water powers to try to placate the fire so the others could move the debris out of the way and get what was left of Leon's body out. His cybernetic limbs and part of his cybernetic torso were no longer there. Retasu cried at the sight…

"He's barely breathing! Dr. Seto!" Sailor Mercury said…

"Yes!" Andr said, as he improvised a connection between his own cyber implants and Leon's battery while Sailor Mercury took care of the first aid…

Three months passed, and life at Kanagawa prefecture had gone back to normal. The destroyed district got swiftly rebuilt and the people who had survived but lost their homes were given new houses to live in…

Back in the original Mew Mew Café in Tokyo, Ryou and Keiichiro were once again watching the news on TV. "The feminist uprisings have only increased in frequency and intensity after the leader of the feminist movement, Naru Narusegawa, was found dead with her husband Keitaro Urashima. Narusegawa's followers claim she was murdered by a sexist man who was against their ideals. The feminists have taken Naru Narusegawa as their martyr and continue to fight in her name" the news anchor said…

Images were shown on TV of the feminist protest, with thousands of women in various places of Japan and even in other parts of the world shouting furiously, holding signs and pictures of Naru as if she were their saint…

"The feminist movement is now stronger than ever, and various new leaders have risen up to take Naru Narusegawa's mantle and continue guiding the women in their fight" the news anchor said, cutting to various interviews with various girls and women, their names appearing on the screen as they talked…

"Men are nothing but dirt and I shall treat them as such" said a girl named Shana…

"I'm going to fry those sexist pigs!" said a girl named Mikoto Misaka…

"Men should be women's slaves! I will do whatever it takes to reverse the gender roles!" said princess Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière…

"I'm going to make sure that all men know their place" said a grey-haired girl named Moka Akashiya…

These girls all had angry crowds of women screaming with signs and pictures of Naru, who was their inspiration, as their background…

"Is this the beginning of a female-dominated society? Are gender roles going to get turned on their heads? We will keep you informed" the news anchor said before Ryou turned off the TV…

"We're a hopeless species, aren't we?" Ryou commented sadly. "I can't shake off this feeling that we have just fought for nothing…"

"I know. It just feels like the situation has gotten worse than ever… But I've still got faith" Keiichiro replied…

"…You're right. As long as people like the Tokyo Mew Mew exist, there's still hope for this world" Ryou said…

"Exactly… Ichigo-san and the others have already located the next generation of magical girls. Don't worry, the world will continue to be protected" Keiichiro tried to cheer up his friend…

At a highschool also located in Tokyo, Masaya continued to train hard with his kendo long after the rest of the class was gone. Ichigo timidly walked in and approached him…

"Hi, Ichigo-chan!" Masaya said happily, wiping the sweat off his forehead…

"How've you been feeling, Masaya-kun?" Ichigo asked…

"I've been trying hard, but my powers don't manifest anymore… This time the Blue Knight is dead for good" Masaya said a little sadly while looking at his own hands…

"So is Mew Ichigo" Ichigo replied. "From now on, I'm just Ichigo Momomiya, a normal human girl… just like I always wanted"

"Have any plans for tonight? Maybe you and I could go somewhere…" Masaya said…

"Oh! I'd love to… But I have to babysit the Akatsutsumi sisters tonight" Ichigo replied. "The elder sister has incredibly powerful emotions. I think she's the right one to continue the line of heroines that Sailor Moon started"

"It's good to hear that. At least this beautiful planet will continue to be protected long after we're gone" Masaya said. Ichigo and Masaya then hugged and kissed…

At Kanagawa, Andr was done scavenging the ruins of his old bunker."Look what I found, Shinobu-chan!"

Shinobu was living with Andr now, her hair cut short once again, returning to how it was when she was a sweet and shy girl. She was sitting at the couch when she looked aside and saw her beloved holding that shoe she had given to him back in January 4th, six years prior. She was moved. "…But how did it survive the fire in your bunker?"

"I guess I went overboard with the security measures to protect it… After all, it's got great sentimental value to me" Andr said, looking tenderly at that shoe that used to be worn on Shinobu's beautiful foot…

"You… You kept it all these years…" Shinobu said, starting to cry tears of joy…

"I would never get rid of a gift you gave me" Andr said, sitting on the couch with Shinobu…

Shinobu hugged Andr lovingly. "Promise that you will never leave me, Andr-kun" she said, crying…

Andr hugged Shinobu back. "That's for sure, Shinobu-chan… And it's a promise that I will keep no matter what"

Andr and Shinobu then kissed passionately, starting to make out and give each other the love they've needed for years…

Meanwhile, a rebuilt Leon was walking through the forest with Retasu…

"I'm so happy that Dr. Mizuno was able to save you… If I had lost you that day, I…" Retasu said.

Leon gave Retasu a hug before she started crying. Retasu's hands then started to explore Leon's body and feel it up…

"How does your new body feel?" she asked as she touched him…

"Andr did a great job as always, though I miss my superpowers. This body is for living a normal human life… But still, he's saved my life _twice_ …" Leon said…

"We'll have to make him a good present to thank him for his efforts someday, Leon-san" Retasu said…

"Why do you keep calling me Leon- _san_? That's like calling me Señor Leon or Mr. Leon! I think we're at a point in our relationship when you can address me less formally!" Leon said…

"I'm sorry… I was raised to be polite and formal to everybody" Retasu replied…

"Could you at least call me Leon- _kun_?" Leon asked…

Retasu giggled. "Alright… Leon-kun" she said sweetly, making Leon look at her like she was the most adorable creature in the world. "Come on! We're almost there!" she said happily…

They reached the long stone stairs. Leon tried to jump his way up the hill, but soon got reminded that his new body had no superpowers, so he reluctantly walked up the normal way. "Did I tell you how much I miss my superpowers?" he said…

"We're here" Retasu said as she and Leon both stood before the ruins of the Hinata Inn. The turtle that Retasu had encountered last time she was there was now swimming at the hot spring and was perfectly fine…

"Retasu-chan, why did you bring me here?" Leon asked…

"Haven't you heard the legend, Leon-kun? …It's been circulating among the local girls that if a man proposes to you in front of these ruins, your love will last forever" Retasu said…

Leon shook his head and sighed. "Retasu-chan, that's nonsense. Seriously, our married life should not be dominated by some magical bullshit. Making our matrimony a happy one is entirely _our own_ responsibility! _We_ are the ones building our own future!"

"I know… It's just a stupid legend…" Retasu admitted, looking slightly sad. "But that's what makes it so important… Leon-kun, women need to believe in magic"

Retasu then gazed at the ruins of the inn, together with Leon…

"Besides, this is what this inn was meant to represent when Hinata-obaasan built it. Hinata Inn means hope for all women and girls in Japan! …I know it eventually lost its way and the dream became corrupted… But I feel that following the legends and believing in the power of the Legendary Inn the way it was intended is the best way to show proper respect to Hinata-obaasan's spirit…

"Show respect for the enemy? You're too kind, Retasu-chan…" Leon said…

"Leon-kun… One day you plan to propose to me, right? …If, that day, you don't do the proposal in front of these ruins, I'm going to be very sad" Retasu said cutely…

Leon sighed with annoyance. "…Then I suppose this is as good a time as any" he said, suddenly taking a little box out of his pocket, getting on his knee and opening the little box to reveal a ring. "Retasu Midorikawa… Would you do me the honor of marrying me?"

Retasu blushed more intensely than ever, crying tears of joy and feeling the butterflies inside her belly. She was ecstatic…

" _Yes!_ Yes, Leon-kun!" Retasu replied, happier than ever…

Leon then proceeded to put the engagement ring on Retasu's finger…

"Sorry that I had to buy a cheap one… But I'm going to work hard to make us a good future. I will study to become a videogame designer and work as hard as I can to make sure you and our children are not lacking anything" Leon said…

Remembering that Leon's lower half is all cybernetic, Retasu couldn't avoid feeling awkward. "You don't have to feel forced to give me kids, Leon-kun…"

"I know what you're thinking, but Andr puts attention to _every_ detail in anything he builds" Leon replied…

"Uh… Okay?" Retasu said with a funny face, not wanting to ask any awkward questions. "The important thing is we have each other!" she then said with a cute happy face…

"Retasu-chan…" Leon said, staring lovingly into Retasu's beautiful eyes. " _I love you_ "

"I love you too, Leon-kun" Retasu replied, staring lovingly into Leon's eyes as well…

Their lips got closer and closer to each other until they kissed with passion, hugging each other tightly. Their love would last forever…

… _ **The end.**_


End file.
